1 of 5 --or-- It Takes Time
by Shadow-StrikeRaven
Summary: A Series of related one-shots, 1000-6000 words, based after the movie. With threats from Pitch, prank wars, special occasions, different spirits and a lot of discoveries about Jack and how he spent the last 300 years... (A Ninja? Really?) How are the Guardians adjusting to being a group of 5? No set pairings. Rated T for possibility of language and violence. Variety of genres.
1. Jack's a Ninja?

**Jack in Black (a.k.a. Jack is a Ninja...?)**

Jack was sat, frowning, in his customary pose, arms crossed and leaning on his bent knees, on the window seat in the meeting room of Santoff Claussen.  
The others, all debating what to do about the latest threat Pitch posed, namely some kind of new orb creation that could store fear, were still in a heated debate, and after three hours of it, Jack finally had enough. At the next lull in the conversation, he spoke up.  
"Why don't we just destroy them?"  
They all turned at that, and Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"First of all, frostbite, we don't know where they are. Second of all, even if we did, we would likely have to beat Pitch, meaning we might not have the time to destroy them."  
Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"That's... All?"  
"What you mean, that is all?" North said, sitting forward, "Is big problem Jack."  
"Not... Not really. I mean, it's easily solved..."  
They were all staring at him now, and Sandy had a huge question mark above his head and a bemused look.  
"How?"  
The golden guardian nodded and Jack shrugged.  
"I'll get a hold of a sprite I know. Good with shadow-jumping. If the orbs will be anywhere, it'll be in shadow. He can find out where they are, then we just sneak there and get it."  
They all stared at him, then North chuckled.  
"Why not. We have no plan. May as well give Jack's plan shot."  
Jack raised an eyebrow as Bunny stared at him, incredulous.  
"Ya know, ya could'a told us that three hours ago mate..."  
"But you all looked like you were having so much f-"  
"I swear, ya say fun and ya won't be having any for quite a while, Frosty."  
"... Is that a challenge, thumper?"  
Before Bunny could do more than bristle at that, Jack gave a laugh and flew out the window, shouting something about finding the sprite and leaving Bunny to wish he'd never let Tooth show Jack Bambi...

Jack landed outside the network of caves, and sighed as he walked up to the edge, where the inside was full of shadow.  
"Alright, Shady... I'd better not fall over this time..." Jack said, with a sigh, and head inside, hearing and sensing, rather and seeing, his way to the centre of the maze.  
True, he had not had many friends over the last three hundred years, but he'd had a couple. Who he would speak to rarely. Like Shady. He didn't actually know his real name, but Shady seemed okay for the both of them.  
He'd first met the sprite about one hundred and fifty years ago. Outcast from the rest of his kind for his interest in shadows and shadow jumping, he had decided he was better off alone, and had self taught himself to be a master at shadow jumping and deciphering anomalies within the shadow web. Eventually he would have become more of a Shadow spirit than a sprite, if Mother Nature had her way. Then Jack grinned. Maybe he had...He hadn't seen him in nearly three decades after all...  
The first time he'd met the sprite was when he had been doing his usual job of just scattering snow.  
Then he'd gone slightly overboard, and, being unable to make it back to his own home, had settled for a cave on a cliff face.  
He'd woken up to being wrapped in a blanket and being stared at by a round, cheerful face...  
The rest was history. They had both liked their own space, but Jack would stop by every few years for a week or so, or if he needed it. There was a silent agreement between the two that they needed space, but were always there if needed. And Jack had been planning to visit anyway...  
He let instinct take over as he travelled through the tunnels, and was rewarded with a brightening of the tunnels, and an eventual brightly lit doorway.  
A quick rap on the door, in his own unique pattern, had a familiar face appearing from around a doorway, a grin on his face.  
"Jack! It's been a long time..."  
Jack grinned as Shady gestured him inside, and nodded.  
"Yeah... Sorry. Had a hell of a half of a century..."  
"I know. That blizzard in 68? Man, I'll bet Bunnymund was not happy about that."  
"You got that right..."

Jack didn't notice the time pass as they spoke. Shady had lightened up a lot since the last time Jack had seen him, but that may be due to that fact that he was now an official spirit. Which was impressive for someone his age. And he had slowed aging then, so he still looked like he was in his late teens, possibly early twenties. Though he was shorter. Much shorter.  
They spoke for ages, until Jack found himself yawning, and realised he must have been there for hours.  
"Damn it, the others will be getting worried..."  
"Well, it is about time somebody worried about you. Or you let somebody worry."  
"Still going on about that?"  
"You could have ended up in a coma for years if I hadn't found you."  
"I was fine!"  
"Oh, really? Then how come-"  
"You're right, I'm sorry."  
"... What?"  
"I'm sorry... And I don't think I ever thanked you for that?"  
"I... Jack? What did they do to you?"  
Jack laughed, but then it faded into a frown.  
"Made me a guardian... And I need your help."  
"I figured. Word's spread about Pitch's newest weapons..."  
"And we need to destroy them. But to do that-"  
"You need to know where they are. Way ahead of you, Jack. I'd have to be comatose to miss the imprint of those things... I'd need a map to show you though. I think I have one around here some-"  
"Couldn't you show me at the pole?"  
"The-the pole? Jack, that's quite a way aways-"  
"Not with one of these it isn't..."  
Jack pulled out one of North's teleporting orbs and Shady got a glint in his eye.  
"Well, that would wind the Sprite Circle up for sure... Ah why not."  
"Really? Oh. That was easy... I mean, you never leave the cave... Like never ever..."  
"You didn't complain when I saved your ass..."  
"Actually, I did."  
"... Oh yeah, you did. Are you still that stubborn?"  
"Worse."  
Shady whistled slightly.  
"Ouch... Then I pity anybody who gets in your way."  
"Try telling Bunny that... Ready?"  
"As ever..."  
Jack grinned as he gripped the shorter man by the shoulder.  
"Good."  
He threw the orb, saying his destination, and they both leapt through the portal.  
_

An hour later, and they were plotting the best way to get into Pitch's lair. Because that was where the orbs seemed to be. Jack had rolled his eyes at the obviousness of it all, and was now irritating Phil by splattering the nearby elves with snow and getting them to trip him up.  
Shady, which the others had also taken to calling him-even if it sounded very amusing in Bunnymund's accent- was idly flitting between shadows, and watching as the guardians, aside from Jack, as they pooled ways of sneaking in.  
Jack eventually seemed to have had enough and drifted over.  
"They still not got a plan?" He whispered, then groaned as Bunny's ridiculously good hearing picked up on it.  
"Nope. Though it may move faster if ya started giving us a hand 'ere Frostbite..."  
Jack rolled his eyes and drifted over, looking over the brainstormed ideas.  
Then he snorted.  
"Really? Oh dear..."  
Bunny grabbed the scruff of his hoody and yanked him down, frowning.  
"Okay then, Frosty, what's so funny?"  
"Just... Why do you do things the hard way? Why don't you just let Shady jump one of us in, seeing as he had enough power to jump with one other person, that person can leave a tracker, then Bunny can open a tunnel near the tracker and sneak in, help the one already there pack the orbs up and open a portal here. Then throw the boxes through and saunter through ourselves."  
Shady was grinning at the dumbfounded looks on the faces of the older guardians, and spoke up.  
"I can do that. Only with one person though, and only for the one trip. I've been out of the shadows for too long to be of any more use, and I doubt you'll want to waste time waiting for me to recharge each time."  
The older guardians shared looks, then North shrugged.  
"Is good plan."  
Bunny gave Jack a look which easily translated as 'don't let it go to yer head mate' and Jack grinned, before Shady tugged his foot.  
"Another thing. Considering how dark it is in there, you might wanna dress in something...Black?"  
Jack's face fell after a few seconds as he took in what he was saying.  
"Oh... Oh no, not... Not _that_ outfit...? Why are you so insistent that I wear it?"  
"... I have a bet with the fashion guru that is the damned fall elf, that you would wear it before the next century was up. I only have a few years left..."  
"All of that... For a bet?"  
Jack looked incredulous, then rolled his eyes.  
"Fine... This is to say thanks. But just this once. Never. Again. Are we understood?"  
"Perfectly. And hey, it'll totally make the little fairies swoon again."

The other guardians all looked completely bemused, and Shady began to explain.  
"Right. Me and Jack haven't seen each other much, but when we do, it became a kinda tradition to give each other something absurd that may actually come in handy. I asked a fall spirit for advice, an actual nice one this time, and we came up with...an outfit... Which will actually come in useful for this."  
Tooth gave a gasp and started pressing for details, but Shady grinned.  
"You'll have to wait and see..."  
"And I'll bet MI5 never forgive you for stealing it." Jack snorted, and Shady gave him an indignant look.  
"They never knew who it was!"  
"But it was worth an awful lot. I mean, all of the protective and stealth technology and god knows what they were experimenting with...You know, that was the reason they blamed the Russians, and that was why I had to send that damned blizzard over the whole of Russia to stop world war three."  
"You didn't have to do that."  
"And what would the sprite circle have done if I hadn't?"  
"Well..."  
"Exactly. And it wasn't easy, let me tell you..."  
"Okay, okay. But it all worked out f-"  
"Ahem!"  
They both span to see four very bemused, yet amused guardians, and Jack blinked.  
"Oh, right. Yeah. I had a busy century."  
"No kiddin..." Bunny said, with a small whistle, and Shady tugged on his foot again.  
"I'll go get it... Man, I can't wait to see the damned elf spirit pay up..."  
He vanished into a shadow, and Tooth grinned.  
"Am I going to need a camera for this, Jack?"  
He rolled his eyes.  
"If you like... That spirit really is far too keen on placing bets concerning me, so might as well make the most of it."  
Shady appeared a few minutes later with a black bundle, and threw it to Jack, who sighed as he stalked off.

The other guardians looked at the grinning spirit, who refused to give anything away, then North sighed.  
"Right then. I assume we all need black also, dah?"  
Shady nodded,  
"Probably best. I mean, that red might stand out a little..."  
They all either flew, or walked to follow Shady's advice, North deciding that it would be helpful and amusing to dye Bunny's fur black, much to his horror and _extremely_ reluctant agreement, and it was almost an hour before they all returned.  
Sandy, of course, couldn't anything but gold, so they decided he would be there to create a distraction if needed. Tooth had come back in a figure hugging all in one black leotard, black-very kickass looking- boots and a magical tint on her wings, to make them duller.  
Bunny's fur was completely black, much to his irritation, though he had to admit it didn't create any problem aside from with his ego.  
North was in pretty much the same as usual, but everything was black. As in, everything. Heck, even his hair was tied back under a black hair net kind of thing. He was really taking the whole thing as an awful lot of-probably too much- fun...  
And that just left Jack, who was still yet to arrive.

Jack sighed as he looked in the wall length ice mirror he had just made.  
First of all, he was in a black all in one outfit. Insulated to its core temperature, namely his, so he could withstand heat for longer. It was also very flexible, meaning it hugged his form perfectly, and could stretch with his ridiculous air acrobatics, as Bunny called them. The fabric was heat resistant, water resistant, shock resistant, bulletproof -though he had no hide when that would come in handy-blade resistant-seeing as it used some kind of diamond thread technology- and very comfortable, though he would never admit it.  
Over the top went a black leather jacket-mainly for the bet's purposes, damn the shadow spirit- which he didn't bother zipping up, and black boots. Similar to Norths', but hugged his legs much more. Quite thick soles, which he was kinda grateful for, even if he didn't really like wearing shoes, and they went almost up to his knees. He slotted his dagger, which he almost never used-he wasn't even sure the guardians knew he had it- into to the sheath with came with the black belt which he quickly belted around his waist, and took another proper look at himself.  
Just... Wow... But what about his hair? It appeared that Shady had had an answer for that too.  
Non-permanent, spray on hair dye.  
Was he serious? He wasn't serious... He couldn't be...  
But it seemed he was.  
Moon damn the little...  
Then Jack grinned.  
Oh well, may as well make the most of it...  
Ten minutes later, he had most of his hair black, aside from a few white highlights at the front, and he had to admit he barely recognised himself...  
Then he groaned.  
How the hell were Tooth's fairies gonna react to this?  
Suddenly a head popped from the shadows and Shady grinned.  
"Oh yes, this wager is as good as mine...Heck Jack, you look completely... wow... Now move it, they're all in the study. Oh, and if it makes you feel better, Bunny had his fur dyed black..."  
With that, he was gone, leaving a grinning winter spirit behind him.  
On second thoughts, this might be just fine...  
Five minutes later, he was taking a deep breath before pushing the door to the study open.

Tooth and the others were actually quite eager to see their winter spirit in black... Or rather, Tooth and her fairies were very eager, the men were really not all that bothered.  
Her ears flitted as she heard footsteps, and then the door opened.  
There was a moment's stunned silence as everyone took in Jack's appearance, then they all eventually reacted.  
Most of the fairies in the room fainted on the spot, uttering small, delighted gasps, and the rest seemed too stunned to do more than stare at the latest arrival. Tooth was blinking, wondering why on earth she had never made him wear black before, before she fluttered to the sofa. Jack was grinning at the reception he had received, and the sight of the grin marked game over for the rest of the fairies, who promptly fainted on the spot.  
North looked rather amused by it all, and was also wondering where the boy had got the boots... Sandy also looked highly amused by the whole encounter, and was wondering how the hell Shady had convinced him to dye his hair.  
Bunny, on the other hand, was just staring. Simple as that. He was all prepared to throw a few jibes, but they all went out the window. The winter spirit looked... well... Was dangerous the word?  
Huh... Maybe they had been underestimating their newest guardian...  
Shady was quick to snap a couple of photos, much to Baby Tooth's delight, as she demanded that she get a copy-no one had trouble understanding her sharp gestures- to which Shady hastily agreed, before Jack seemed to finally have had enough of the shock and awe...  
"So... We going or what?"

They were going, sure, as soon as they had picked up all of the fairies, a task allotted to Jack, seeing as it was his fault they were all on the floor in the first place.  
It didn't help that they all stirred when they realised they were being moved, and, realising that it was Jack, immediately went into fan-girl tizzy mode, before promptly fainting again, safe in the knowledge that Jack would catch them. He was used to it, after all...  
When they were all safe on the couch, Jack rolled his eyes as he turned to baby-tooth.  
"Was this your idea?"  
She chattered, and Jack frowned, hiding a smile.  
"Oh, so you had nothing to do with the fact that there were a lot more of you guys here than usual?"  
Baby Tooth chattered again, and Jack couldn't help laughing as she made herself comfortable in the collar of his jacket.  
"She's blaming you, Tooth..."  
He raised an eyebrow, black like the rest of his hair, and she blushed.  
"Well...I-I mean..."  
Bunny rolled his eyes as he stopped pacing, eager to get going.  
"Don't botha lyin, Tooth. Ya came back 'ere with a bloody train of them be'ind ya."  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"Really? I have enough of a fan club as it is... Anyway, who's Shady taking?"  
Tooth raised her hand.  
"Makes sense seeing as I'm the smallest. Less likely to be noticed."  
"But what if he does notice you?"  
Bunny nodded.  
"He's right Tooth... You can't beat him on yer own."  
As Tooth argued her point, a silent conversation was going on between Jack, Sandy, North and Bunny, who all eventually, however reluctantly, nodded.  
It made sense. He could hold Pitch off, he was clearly more than capable of keeping out of sight, and he was used to being taken through shadows', having been through the experience a couple of times before. He snatched the tracker from the desk, just as Tooth realised what all the stares had been about, gave a quick grin and, with a nod to Shady, he gripped his staff tighter, grabbed the shadow sprite's shoulder, and felt a sharp tug, before the whole room vanished.  
_

Jack blinked as a dark passage span into existence, and Shady had to grab him to stop the dizziness from sending him flat on his face. After a few seconds, it cleared, and Jack nodded.  
"Okay, I'm fine. Let's get moving..."  
A few minutes later, they arrived in a wide cavern, with stone walkways crisscrossing the entire distance, and Jack nodded as Shady gestured to the bottom of the huge space, where a-well, there really was no other word for it-workshop was situated, with several crates of the orbs they were looking for.  
Jack frowned as he realised there was no wind this far underground, and debated the best way to get down, until Shady tugged his sleeve.  
"I've got enough in me for one more jump, but then I'm gonna have to head straight back to the cave..."  
Jack nodded, and gripped his arm, vanishing and using the all to prop himself up until the dizzy wave passed again when they reached the bottom.  
"Thanks Shady... You'd better get going-"  
"Not till that damned Pooka arrives. There's something about this place-"  
"I'll be fine. If you don't get to your cave soon, and to those concentrated shadows, you'll end up comatose..."  
"I can last a little longer..."  
Jack sighed as he activated the tracker, and rolled his eyes.  
"Don't tell me their over protectiveness has worn off onto you?"  
"No. I know that you're a hell of a lot more powerful than they think. They need to realise that you spent 300 years looking after yourself, and that it can't change like that-" He clicked his fingers, then sighed, "But they were right when they said you spent far too long alone Kiddo."  
"Meh, I had you and the others..."  
"You had four people you could turn to Jack. Four. Over three hundred years. And one of those was the wind... I don't think I realised how bad it was..."  
"Hey, I'm fine... You on the other hand, are not. You need to get going, or you're gonna end up like last century..."  
The sound of someone clearing their throat for attention had them spinning, and Jack sighed in relief as he realised it was Bunny.  
"See? It's fine. Now you'd better get going..."  
The shadow spirit nodded, still reluctant, but realising he really had better go. Before he could spin away however, Jack clasped his shoulder.  
"Hey, what is your real name anyway?"  
The spirit raised an eyebrow.  
"... Pantelaimerius Lidofus Corfusa. Why?"  
Jack blinked.  
"... Nothing. Just wondering... Hey, can I call you Pan from now on?"  
"... Go for it."  
He was still laughing as he vanished, and Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Come on then, Frostbite. Let's get these packed up."

Bunny was pacing, and Tooth was likewise doing so, but five feet above him.  
"What's taking so long..." She asked, for the fifth time in as many minutes, and North sighed.  
"Jack is fine. Give him more credit Tooth. Will take time."  
Bunny was likewise nervous. The plan was meant to be simple... He knew the little frost nipper could handle himself, but something felt wrong... Something felt like it was about to go wrong...  
A sudden beeping told them that the tracker had been activated, and they all looked up at the globe, where they had relocated to as soon as Jack had vanished.  
Bunny honed in on the spot and got his bearings, before nodding and tapping the floor, jumping down the whole that appeared and popping up a short while later only to hear voices.  
_Don't tell me their over protectiveness has worn off onto you_?" That was Jack...  
_"No. I know that you're a hell of a lot more powerful than they think_."The sprite answered, both clearly unaware he was there, "_They need to realise that you spent 300 years looking after yourself, and that it can't change like that_-" Bunny heard the sound of him clicking his fingers and a sigh before he continued "_But they were right when they said you spent far too long alone Kiddo."_  
_"Meh, I had you and the others..."  
"You had four people you could turn to Jack. Four. Over three hundred years. And one of those was the wind... I don't think I realised how bad it was..."  
_Bunny blinked... Seems Shady wasn't the only one who didn't realise how bad it was..._  
"Hey, I'm fine... You on the other hand, are not. You need to get going, or you're gonna end up like last century..."_ Bunny decided to intervene and cleared his throat to draw their attention.  
They both looked startled, before Jack grinned, clearly relieved, and told the sprite to get moving.  
He was still trying to wrap his mind around the real name of the spirit, when he vanished and he pushed it from his mind, to be replaced with the reason they were here.  
"Come on then, Frostbite. Let's get these packed up. "  
It wasn't difficult to throw the odd ones into partially full boxes, and Bunny grabbed the orb, throwing it and saying their destination.  
North and Tooth's relieved expressions appeared the other side, and they started throwing the boxes through. The last was through and Bunny was just about to follow Jack through when he heard a noise.  
He turned back, ears twitching, and just managed to dive out of the way as a nightmare came out of nowhere.  
He landed in a roll, just as the portal closed, and pushed himself to his feet only to see that Jack had leapt back through at the last minute.  
Bunny sighed as he leapt over and put himself back to back with the other guardian.  
"Not your brightest idea, Frostbite..."  
"Not yours either. Why not just jump through the damned portal...?"  
"... Shut up."  
For the first time, Jack listened, though that may have been because they were now surrounded by nightmares. A familiar laugh had them glaring at a tall, thin figure as he appeared in beside them.  
"Well well, what do you know? You actually managed to find the orbs. After all my hard work hiding them... Oh well, I can make more. And having two guardians is a fair trade I think."  
"Ya haven't got us yet mate..."  
Bunny said, glaring, and suddenly threw his boomerang at one of the nightmares. It hit two more on the return journey, before landing firmly in Bunny's paw.  
Just like that, the nightmares moved, and both guardians threw themselves into the fight.  
_

Shady, or Pan depending on what you wanted to call him, cursed as he felt he fight begin, and knew there was nothing he could do in his weakened state.  
Then he blinked. Actually, there was. He flitted to the pole, catching the other three guardians.  
"North! Do you have any swords other than your own?"  
"Well... Yes but why-"  
"Where?"  
North opened a portal to what appeared to be a weapons room-Santa Claus had a weapons room? Go figure...- and Shady bounded inside, grinning as he caught sight of a series of swords hanging on the wall.  
"Can I take these two?"  
North looked completely bemused.  
"Why?"  
"Because Bunny and Jack are surrounded by Nightmares, and Jack needs a decent weapon."  
North and the other two blinked.  
"Jack uses swords?"  
"300 years is a long time to get bored. Jack liked the look of them and decided to learn... These will do until I find his ones."  
"Then take. Take and go. We will be there also, when we calibrate portal location with location on globe."_  
_"You got it."  
Shady jumped back just in time to see Jack thrown back by Pitch, and Bunny turn to try and help, too far away to do anything.

Jack cursed as he got attacked not only by nightmares but also by Pitch. Bunny had his hands full, what with there being hundreds of the damned things in the cavern, and he wasn't able to call for the wind because they were too far underground. Freezing them could only do so much...  
Just as he was thinking that, he felt himself thrown back and couldn't help an involuntary cry as he collided with the wall.  
Bunny was too far away to give him a hand, and his staff was several feet away, where it had been torn from his hand. Just as he was wondering how the hell he was going to get out of this one, he heard a familiar voice, and turned to see Shady, holding out two twin Sai blades.  
He didn't question where he got them, he didn't question why he was there, he simply gave him a grateful grin, caught them and leapt to his feet. They may not be his blades, but they would do...  
After that, the fight seemed to turn for him.  
Nightmare after nightmare fell, having to retreat to reform, and even though he missed his own frost marked Sai, which would have destroyed the nightmares, it was definitely better than nothing. A quick gesture ensured Shady grabbed his staff and kept it in shadow space, and he focused solely on the task at hand.  
And, he had to admit, it might have taken years to learn to use all of the different swords and bows and martial arts, but it had kept him from being bored... and it as definitely worth the look on Bunny's face as he took it in.

E. Aster Bunnymund was near enough an expert at all styles of martial art. And was actually pretty good with the weapon styled techniques too, but he had never seen someone with a style quite like Jacks. It seemed to combine the weapons with various different martial arts moves and very agile, flexible techniques. And it was impressive. Very impressive...  
Combine that with the outfit and the style of weapon choice- though he wasn't quite sure where they came from- and Jack was... well... A ninja. Literally.  
Problem was, the nightmares kept reforming...Bunny made his way over to Jack, fighting his way through, and decided to keep a safe distance between them, until he could dart in and go back to back again, irritated with himself for not being faster with creating a tunnel out of their when the fight began, but taking the current revelation as something of a silver lining from the whole mess.  
"Damn it, Frostbite, where the hell did ya learn to do that?"  
"300 years is a long time. It stopped me getting bored. I just wish I had my own. They're frost marked and would actually destroy the damned things..."  
Before Bunny could take in the fact that Jack had his own Sai, a fact which he wasn't sure worried him or reassured him, Shady popped from the shadows holding a bundle, and Jack gave a huge grin, eyes flashing. As Jack threw the two blades he was holding to Shady, the shadow spirit threw the bundle to Jack, who nimbly caught it and swiftly unwrapped it, revealing two very dangerous looking weapons.  
Black leather was wrapped around the handles, but blue and white ice patterns trailed up each one, as well down the ice blue blades. They appeared to have incorporated Jack's element into them, essentially making them a part of him and he grinned at the dumbfounded look on Bunny's face.  
"You think these are cool? Wait till you see my Katana..."  
"You have a Katana?"  
"Yup... But I gave up on Shruikans. Ones made of ice are far more effective..."  
"... Ya know, I've been under-estimatin ya frostbite... How about a tunnel out of here?"  
Before Jack could do more than grin at that, a portal opened and the other three guardians leapt through.  
Pitch, seeming to finally snap, cried out for the nightmares to attack, and Bunny grinned as he realised that the other three guardians were in for quite a surprise...  
Sure enough...

A few minutes later, and they had all managed to get to North, who opened another portal, letting them all leap through. As soon as it closed behind them, they all turned, incredulous, to Jack, who took a small step back, raising his eyebrows and shrugging.  
"What?"  
Ah from the corner had them all looking at Shady, who grinned.  
"Oh dear, have they been underestimating you Jack?"  
"Looks like it. Seriously guys, when I said I could take care of myself, I actually meant it..."  
Jack grinned as he placed the Sai in the specifically designed spaces on the belt, and caught his staff as the shadow spirit threw it to him.  
"Thanks Shady. Does Gale still have my Katana?"  
"Yeah. I'll get her to send it over."  
"Nah, that's alright. I haven't visited in a while..."  
"Okay, I'll just let her know to expect you. Now I'm going to sleep. Like I do after every time you visit."  
Before Jack could do more than exclaim indignantly, Shady had nodded to the other guardians and vanished.  
Then Jack turned back to the other guardians. Sandy was grinning, and gave Jack a high five, North looked completely bemused, Tooth looked as if she wasn't sure how to take the news that her little sweet tooth was actually pretty capable of taking care of himself, and Bunny looked like Easter had come early.  
"So Jack," North said, slumping down onto the sofa in the lounge, followed by the others, "How come you can use sword?"  
Jack sighed.  
"It's a long story..."  
"We have time... "  
The rest of them nodded avidly, and Jack sighed, getting more comfortable and nodding.  
"Okay, well, It was about 220... no, 230 years ago..."

* * *

**Next chapter, a bit about how Jack came to be a virtual Ninja, Bunny decides he wants to spar, and a few other random things I might chuck in :D**

**Disclaimer- I don't own Rise of the Guardians, or the places and characters...  
(However much I might want to *sniffle*) Though Shady... or Pan... or whatever, is all mine :D**

**Please review and let me know what you think! Or to give me ideas for other one-shots :D  
Oh, and sorry if some characters may go slightly OOC! **

**Raven xx**


	2. Jack's a Ninja, Part 2

**Disclaimer- I don't own Rise of the Guardians  
Wow... I was really ot expecting the response to this, because I thought this was a quite small fandom, but thanks none-the-less to those who followed and faved... You know who you are :D  
Thanks so much guys, and please let me know of anything I can change, or do more of or just general requests or ideas for one shots by leaving a review :D  
So, without further ado, please enjoy!  
-This continues straight after the previous chapter.**

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"Okay, so, let me get this straight..." Bunny said, North, Sandy and Tooth having left to do their jobs, leaving him and Jack to continue their conversation.  
"Let me get this straight... You were bored, so decided to fly across a load of mountains. Found a monastery where they were teaching martial arts and what-not, and used it as your little base for a century as you learnt all of these fighting styles?"  
"Pretty much."  
"Wow... Well, that's one way to stop yourself getting bored I guess... And there was me thinking I would have no-one to practise with..."  
Jack blinked.  
"What?"  
"Practise. Oh come on, ya don't think I'm gonna leave the question of who's best, do ya?"  
Jack looked up at the ridiculously large Pooka, and gave a huge grin.  
"Couldn't have put it better myself. What can you do?"  
"Most martial arts... Bow, swords of most kinds... Oh, and the boomerang of course."  
"Hmm... Right. I'll go get all of my stuff... though it may take a while..." Jack murmured as he thought through where everything was. It would mean visiting a couple of people, and several different places and lockers around the world...  
"Take all the time ya want mate. Just don't tell Tooth, eh? She'll have me head for putting her 'ickle sweet tooth' in danger..."  
"No need to worry about that, I'm not gonna be the one in any danger..."  
The Pooka blinked, and opened his mouth to reply, but Jack was already gone, his laughter echoing down the hall as he head off to tell North he was leaving.  
Bunny cracked his knuckles.  
This was going to be fun...

Three days later, Jack was whistling as he sauntered into the burrow, and threw the last of his things down onto the steady pile that had been forming the last couple of days, and that Bunny had moved outside that morning.  
The Pooka had been surprised by the amount of stuff the kid actually had. So, he couldn't bother with clothes or what not, but had a ridiculous selection of weapons? Figures...  
His two Sai were joined by a set of twin Katana's, clearly from the same place of origin, a couple of bows, several slingshots-that apparently worked very well for starting snowball fights- as well as several different outfits for different martial arts. Not that Jack had ever used them, but he figured he may as well dump them there anyway... Not that Bunny missed that, but he didn't really mind.  
I response to where Jack had got them from, he simply shrugged and said that though people might not have believed in him, they certainly believed in spirits...  
The cryptic comment still set the sympathy chord going, and Bunny rolled his eyes at himself. It never really stopped did it?  
He leant against a tree as Jack wrapped a length of fabric around each of his hands and wrists, then pulled on a pair of thin gloves, made of the same fabric as the black all in one he had, that left the top half of his fingers bare, before turning with a grin.  
"Okay then, Thumper. Let's see what you got..."

An hour later, they decided on a tie with regards to the bows, and moved on to the Katana's, which Bunny coated in a rubbery liquid, that made them safe to use.  
Deciding to stick with just the one, they began to spar. It took a few minutes, but eventually, Jack's abilities had it so that Bunnymund wasn't holding back. That particular bout, made up of three rounds, went on for a while, until the final score was Bunnymund 2, Jack one. But only narrowly.  
Taking a break, it wasn't hard for Jack to convince Bunnymund to make it a regular thing.  
Heck, the huge Pooka was having more fun than he had had in ages!  
Jack was clearly better with the Sai's, but Bunny made up for it with the boomerang.  
Then Bunnymund decided it would be a good idea to teach Jack how to use a fighting staff... Considering he always carried his own around anyway...  
But that would have to wait for another time, as Sandy dropped by with a warning that Tooth was looking for Jack, and that if she found them, he wouldn't be clearing up the mess.  
None-the-less, he stuck around to watch what they had been looking forward to.  
Rules were simple. Any kind of hand to hand style or technique allowed, but no flying and no tunnels...  
_

"Damned ankle biter..." Bunny cursed, as he dodged yet another spinning kick and leapt backwards.  
Sure, he had the height and weight advantage, but Jack had speed and agility.  
They were pretty evenly matched. Bunnymund had to call in all of his different techniques to try and catch the spirit out, but they were both being thrown to the floor at an equal rate... Or roughly anyway. He wasn't going to waste time checking with Sandy, who was keeping count. Especially when the white haired bloody whirlwind was grinning at him, with the usual mischievous glint in eyes.  
It was the come get me gesture that did it.  
"Alright snowflake, let's ramp this up a bit, eh?"  
"What ya got in mind?"  
"You can fly, I can tunnel. But no snow or ice or whatever..."  
"Done and do-"  
"E. ASTER BUNNYMUND!"  
They both flinched as Tooth flew into sight, and Jack slowly sidled away from the Pooka, who now looked downright terrified.  
"Er... Hey Tooth-"  
"I'll have you 'hey Tooth'ing me, you irresponsible, oversized plushie! Are you crazy?"  
"N-Now Tooth, the kid is fine-"  
"He could have been seriously hurt!"  
"Calm it, Tooth, he's better than me at most of this stuff!"  
The fairy blinked, looking between them, then up to Sandy, who had slowly been trying to shift away. The golden guardian looked very nervous as the fairy floated up to him, and gave a sheepish smile, with a little wave.  
"You've been letting them do this?"  
A series of images flashed up.  
"Hang on... Jack... Beat Bunnymund... wait, Jack beat Bunny?"  
Sandy nodded, then gestured down to the others.  
It wasn't difficult to see what he was saying...  
_Bunny...pinned... or threw down...Jack..._ A golden 85 lit up, and they both frowned... It was going to be close. Even Tooth looked eager at this point, her anger forgotten.  
_Jack... Scored... _8... 7  
Jack blinked as the 7 formed, then blinked again, before whooping and doing a victory dance in the air. He ever flew over to Tooth and pulled her into a spin, laughing, before landing on the ground.  
However, instead of the glare he was expecting, Bunny gave him a huge smile, and high fived him.  
"Nice going, Whirlwind..."  
"Cheers Plushie."

Tooth went pink, as Bunny glared at her, rolling his eyes, realising that the new insult had been provided by her, but then giggled as several of the fairies who had been watching, unknown to either Jack or Bunny, came forward with a camera. She flicked through the pictures, and giggled again, as they started swooning at the pictures of Jack, still wearing the black outfit-having wanted no hindrance to his movements- with swords and what not, looking... well, if her fairies were anything to go by, with them fainting left right and centre, he looked good.  
Baby Tooth chirped to her, and she giggled again, calling down to Jack.  
"Baby Tooth says that you may be cool all the time, but this time you looked hot."  
Jack blinked, and a slight blue-ish purple tinge hit his cheeks, making the rest of the present fairies, who had just started to recover, faint again as they realised this was him blushing, and Bunnymund laughed.  
"I'd a thought ya'd be used to this by now, mate..."  
"Well... Y-yeah but... Well... Oh shut up. You can't talk. You're a bloody eight foot rabbit called Plushie... "  
"Right, ya little-"  
He took off after the laughing guardian, cursing every time he had to dodge ice and snow and eventually gave up, glaring at him.  
"Ya just wait, frostbite... This is not going to end well..."  
Sandy formed a huge arrow out of gold, pointing it at Bunnymund, and the words for you, in a creepy font.

An hour later, as he dug his way out of a snowdrift, Bunny frowned as he thought back to it.  
Sandy couldn't tell the future could he?  
Then he sighed. No, but it was far too easy to predict the outcome of a battle between him and Jack Frost. The odds of him actually winning one were pretty much 1000 to 1... on a good day.  
Though he would have to remedy that...  
That thought had him grinning as he shook snow from his tail  
Yeah... He would remedy that...

* * *

**So, Bunny will have his revenge! But not for a while yet, as I have a lot planned... And they do say revenge is best served cold! See what I did there?  
Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!**


	3. Taking a Fall

**First of all, More Faves and Follows? You guys are amazing, hence my second update today :D  
****Thanks to Night-Fury1, FuzzyLeaf, JJ100051,DancingMirror77, lightning lynx, prongslet101, Rise-of-the-writer and Aunna for the follows and faves :D :D You are all amazing! And thanks to everyone who reviewed as well!**

**Okay, this one is set... well, a couple of weeks after the last ones I guess, and does have a bit of angst and not good...ness in it.  
****More about Jack's history, and some buddy bonding...  
****Hope you enjoy!  
****  
**

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Jack was too busy making it snow to notice the fall spirits, a small gang of spirits who made it their mission in life to make him miserable due to his constantly making it snow and making fall end-even if it was strictly necessary- and so was unprepared for when they jumped him as he landed in the woods near the pond. He managed to fight a couple of them off, but, in true fall style, when they began, they got worse and worse. Plus there were eleven of them against one of him. How was that fair?  
Therefore when, a few minutes later, he got himself thrown into the pond, and barely managed to scramble back out, he was thrown straight into a rock face.  
He wasn't sure what it was, but something broke... A few moments later, the fall spirits vanished, and Jack sank to the floor, curling up against the rock in a ball.  
Everything hurt. He was sure he had fractured his leg, his ankle was swollen, his side was bleeding, he wasn't sure, but he thought he could feel a broken rib... or two... One of his shoulders was bleeding and so stiff he couldn't move it, which might have been a good thing, seeing as he had a long gash down the full length of his arm.  
His other arm had a few scratches, but was otherwise unharmed. His head though? Urgh, he knew he had a concussion...  
From past experience, on the odd year they were able to catch him off guard, he knew that it would take a couple of weeks for him to get back to normal without any treatment...  
And it's not like he could move anywhere...  
A sudden shuffling in the trees had him flicking his eyes and grasping his staff tighter, but he gave a small sigh when a familiar face popped up.  
Flow, the small fall spirit, sidled up to him, eyes sorrowful. Unlike most of her comrades, she was soft hearted, even if she did make bets with shadow spirits about getting Jack to wear ridiculous outfits, he thought, mentally smiling.  
The small spirit sighed as she took in his injuries.  
"Not again... I'm sorry Jackie... I'm always trying to make them stop but they hate winter spirits and well-"  
"Flow, I'm fine..." he gasped as he tried to move, "Okay, maybe I'm not fine, but I will be..."  
Flow perked up slightly as an idea came to her and she smiled.  
"Hang on, I'll go and fetch Bunnymund. He's not too far from here if I take the tunnels..."  
She was gone before Jack could comment and he sat back with a sigh.  
Great.  
_

Bunny was lounging, for once, on the grassy hill, when the warren alerted him that someone had entered.  
He leapt up, and realized, from what he could see, that it was a fall spirit. Why on earth...?  
"Guardian, Bunnymund? My name's Flow... Jack needs your help-"  
"What? What's the little frostbite done this time?"  
"No, no it's...Oh, it's a long story. Can I tell you as we go... Please hurry, he's really hurt."  
Bunny didn't need to be told twice and got to his feet, running alongside the spirit.  
"So, what the hell happened?"  
What he heard had him fuming, and he had a half mind to rage at Fall about it, but knew it was more important to get to Jack.  
He opened up a tunnel out of sight of Jack, at the spirit's request, and turned to her, gesturing for her to say what she had to.  
"Look," she started, faintly, "You have to be careful... You have to remember that Jack has been on his own a long time. He's used to dealing with these things himself... Just don't treat him like a-"  
"Kid? Believe me, I know he's anythin' but."  
She smiled, and nodded.  
"Say bye to Jack for me... And tell him to visit soon...?"  
"Sure... Oh, and in future, it's just Bunnymund. None of that formal stuff, eh?"  
Smiling, she nodded and, with a twirl, she vanished in a swirl of leaves. Bunnymund sighed before heading through the trees himself and he cursed again as he saw the state Jack was in. Blood had soaked through his hoody, his shoulder was set awkwardly and he was clearly in a state of between consciousness.  
Running up, he sank down next to the winter spirit and tapped him on his good shoulder.  
"Hey Frostbite... You awake?"  
"B... Bunny...?"  
"Yeah... Just got dragged across the globe by a small fall spirit... Very pushy thing too..."  
"Tell me...bout it... But... m' fine...h'nest..."  
"Sure y'are Frostbite. Come on, let's get ya cleared up... Ya friend says ya hav'ta visit soon as well..."  
Jack's protests that Bunny really didn't need to worry stopped as he drifted off into a light state of unconsciousness, and Bunnymund sighed.  
"Ya shouldn'ta had ta get used to this, mate..."  
A few minutes later, and he opened a tunnel right outside North's study, adjusting the still unconscious Guardian in his arms, before letting himself in. North jumped up at the sight of Jack, hurrying from around the desk.  
"What happened? Hurry, to med room."

North was likewise angry, no livid was more the word for it, as he heard what had happened, but switched his focus to Jack. It wasn't long before the younger guardian was resting, lightly, in his own room, his chest bandaged, one arm in a sling and the other bandaged to stop the bleeding from the scratches, and his leg set. It would be a few hours till he woke up, Sandy having quickly dropped by to see what was going on and to send Jack into one of the best dreams he had made for the young guardian, before having to shoot of again.  
Tooth was on her way, and it wasn't long before she burst into the study, wanting to see Jack.  
Bunny was quick to stop her from racing off, and told her the same as he had told North.  
"Look Tooth, Flow was right. E's been alone a long time, and 'e ain't gonna wan' us keepin' tabs on 'im. Frostbite's stronger than we give 'im credit for."  
"Yes, but-"  
"No buts, Tooth." This was North. "Jack does need space. We help, but cannot heal. He mustn't feel like we think he is useless..."  
"But we don't think th-"  
"No, but he might not think that. Must take slowly. 300 years is long time. Will take time to adjust to not being alone..."  
Tooth nodded, realising that they were right. It would take time for Jack to fully adjust to not having to do everything for himself. They could only be there to help him...

Bunny waited till Jack had woken up before questioning him about the fall spirits.  
Jack had shrugged.  
"I'm fine. They can only catch me every other decade or so..."  
"Dontcha fight back?"  
"Well, yeah, but when there are eleven of them, and they can all vanish in a swirl of bloody leaves, there isn't much you can do really... Not without seriously hurting them. Freezing them properly is really not good for them, you see..."  
Bunny stared at Jack for a few seconds, then stormed out.  
North sighed as Jack asked where he was going.  
"He is going to have... chat with Fall..."  
"But... What if he-"  
"He will be fine, Jack. If it will make you feel better, I will go too?"  
"I- Yeah...but-"  
Too late, the Guardian had given him a light hug, mindful of the injuries, and head out to follow Bunny. Jack sighed, turning to Tooth.  
"Why are they making such a thing out of it?"  
"Several reasons Sweet Tooth... You know we all regret not being there for you the last 300 years, but finding out these thing that keep happening to you because we never bothered to help...It's not easy for us Jack."  
"But... It wasn't your fault that-"  
"Please don't Jack. Just accept that we feel the blame for it?"  
"I- But I don't-"  
"Jack? Look at it from our point of view... With each new thing we find out about you, the things you suffered through... All the wars, the loneliness... and now this? We should have noticed, and we didn't... I guess you're just going to have to get used to us worrying all the time... I'm sorry if that's always making you uncomfortable but-"  
"No... No, I-I think I like it... Having a... Family...?"  
Tooth's heart nearly broke at the tentative way he asked it, and she pulled him into a hug.  
"Just like a family. Because that's what you are Jack..."  
He gave her a wide grin as she pulled back, and chuckled as Baby Tooth curled up into his hair, before frowning at the state of his hoody.  
"Bugger... I loved that hoody... I'm gonna have to wear the leather jacket till I can get a new one-"  
Two fairies who had just swooped into the room froze at those words, before fainting right above Jack's head. He easily caught them and smiled as he handed them to Tooth, who was grinning.  
"Actually, Jack, I have something for you... I'll be right back..."  
With that, she flew off, leaving Jack with two unconscious fairies and one sleeping.  
_

Half an hour later, Tooth returned to find Jack in a light sleep, the three fairies curled up in his hair, and smiled, laying the wrapped package on the table beside the bed and setting herself down in the chair, soon dozing herself.  
A couple of hours later, North and Bunny were leaping through a portal, several unconscious fall spirits behind them, and a very panicked Fall stuttering that he'd never touch the winter spirit again, and they gave each other a high five as the portal closed behind them. One problem dealt with.  
They entered the room just as Sandy flew in through the window, and they both grinned as they saw Jack, nearly covered in fairies.  
Tooth was clearly asleep, and Sandy threw a dream at her, doing the same for Jack, before shooing the fairies away, all aside from Baby Tooth who glared with enough ferocity to make the golden man back away.  
North had to get back to work, but Bunny decided he could take a break, and he and Sandy began a game of cards to pass the time away.

A few hours later, Tooth flew into the room, grinning, and laughed as they plied her with questions.  
"Jack's fine... Better than fine. He's just rolling around in the snow to get his energy back up and heal his injuries a bit more. It'll still be a while before the ribs heal properly, but he's gonna be fine. The snow should take away the rest of the headache, and reduce the swelling on his ankle and shoulder, and hopefully freeze the cuts over. Oh, hey North."  
This was to the big man entering the room, and he smiled when he saw the grin on her face.  
"He finally got up and went into snow, da?"  
"Yeah. I've told him to rest up though..."  
"He will not list-"  
"Yeah he will. We had a chat."  
They all looked at her, and she shrugged.  
"Hey, it was the motherly instincts..."  
North rolled his eyes and sat down, taking a cookie from a passing elf.  
"Has Bunny told you what happened with Fall?"  
"Only that he won't mess with Jack again..."  
"Da... I think he will stick with promise."  
He and Bunny shared a look, and burst out laughing, leaving Sandy and Tooth to share a look and decide it was really better not to ask...

Jack was still grinning as he flew inside the French windows and settled on the bed, laughing when Baby Tooth tried to cuddle up to him, only to squeal and dart away.  
"Sorry BT, I'm still a bit cold..."  
He experimentally stretched, and winced slightly as his chest twinged. His leg was aching a bit as well, but the headache had cleared, and the scratches and cuts had healed with the scars already fading. Another day or two and he'd be perfectly fine... Unlike when he was on his own, when it could take a couple of weeks to heal...  
He smiled as he picked up Tooth's gifts again.  
It was basically his whole outfit, but brand new and... improved.  
Full length brown trousers, and not only a blue hoody that was the same colour as his eyes, but also a black one and a pair of black trousers, which were pretty much jogging bottoms...  
He could take a hint... And they were ridiculously comfy. The hoodys' were too... And she'd given him a long necked woollen-type jumper in the same shade of blue, as well as some soft t-shirts.  
It was more clothing than he had owned in... well, centuries, and Tooth had been completely surprised at the gratitude he'd shown.  
Before he'd explained, and she had vowed to get him more.  
He was now dressed in the black jogging bottoms, and was feeling even more grateful to Tooth as he realised that, not only were they were a perfect fit, but they were ridiculously soft and comfortable, as well as not being too hot.  
He decided to leave his top off, after some very heart-breakingly big puppy eyes had been shot his way by the fairies as he went to put one on, plus the fact it was making his shoulder ache a bit when he raised it, and he settled back against the headboard.  
He thought through what Tooth had said, about everything the Guardians were feeling, deciding to try and make more of an effort to be less of a lone shark, and he smiled happily as he remembered what Tooth had said about them being a family...  
It felt good to have a family again...  
He felt himself slipping off, and made himself more comfortable, letting Baby Tooth curl up in his hair again, before he let himself doze off.  
_

The other checked in on him several times over the next fourteen hours, as he slept, and North was pleased with his progress.  
"He is smart boy. The more he sleeps, the quicker he heals. Is shame he had to learn hard way..."  
Tooth was still horrified by how little Jack actually owned, and immediately set about getting a group of her fairies to plan an entire wardrobe, to which Jack had no idea, considering she knew he would be a little overwhelmed by it all. She still smiled when she remembered the joyful gratitude that sparkled in his eyes as he had unwrapped what she had made for him, and was glad that he liked them. He had even taken the subtle hint about the black!  
Now she was preparing to head back to work, knowing she couldn't put it off any longer, as much as she wanted to, and made North promise her that he would let her know as soon as Jack woke up.  
She let Baby Tooth stay with Jack, and grinned as the image of Peter Pan and Tinkerbell came into her mind. It was very much like that with those two... She gave him a quick peck on the forehead before taking off, leaving him to Bunny's care, Sandy and North likewise having returned to work.  
Bunnymund found it was not at all boring to keep an eye on the younger guardian, who seemed to be subconsciously making swirls of snow, and lounged back on the chair.  
It was another couple of hours before Jack stirred and yawned, pushing himself upwards.

He was a little disorientated for a second, until he realized where he was, and blinked as Bunnymund leapt out of the chair.  
"Hey, how ya feelin Frostbite?"  
"Good... I feel fine. Which is weird, seeing as how it normally takes at least a week to recover..."  
He wished he had never said anything as Bunny flinched slightly, and hastened to change the subject.  
"But I'm fine. Did Tooth finally get back to work?"  
"Yeah. The mother hen finally left the nest. She should be back soon though. Sandy too. I'll just let North know you're up."  
"I can do that..."  
Bunny was about to complain, but then stopped himself. He got enough worrying from Tooth and North. He needed to be the one who didn't push him...  
"Yer sure?"  
"Yep."  
Jack literally bounced to his feet, frowning slightly at the slight twinge in his chest, but knowing it would fade in a few hours, and grinned.  
"Let's go annoy Phil- See North..."  
Bunny rolled his eyes, as he followed the chirpy guardian out of the room, Baby Tooth flitting around his head before taking off to let Tooth know he was awake, and sighed.  
The little nuisance was pretty much back to normal. Now he just had to set the traps at the entrance to his warren again...  
Because, really, he had just got it back to being green again...

* * *

** I know it wasn't my best work... But please review and let me know what you think! **

******(Oh, and sorry for any OOC...ness in this, the previous chapters, or future ones. I've only seen the film once *sheepish shrug*)**

******Raven xx**


	4. Over-working

**This is set... about a few weeks after the last maybe? Possibly? Either way, it's been quite some time, and Im trying to slot them in around Easter and Christmas and such... And it was written because it's not only Jack who gets in trouble all the time... And because I know he has a mature side and wanted to let it show :D**

**Thanks, again, to everyone who's reading this fic :D And thanks to all new followers and favers: Readerfever, LadyPsycho16, viridialn9, catlover123456789, aed713, Berry-Twin2, dilila23 (Cheers for all the other follows and faves too, lila!), standingintherain13, IWillNeverStopFangirling, demonweasel, Rubes99, EmotionalDreamer101, Alalaya2, Kurama111 and KaitouHime-KnightsWing.  
Its great to know it's being enjoyed! *hugs to everyone***

**So, without further ado, Enjoy!  
**

* * *

Jack grinned as he watched the children playing in the freshly laid snow. The happy squeals that came from where he had just started a snowball fight had him laughing, and he was just about to leave when he heard a very familiar chirping and turned to see a shivering Baby Tooth flying towards him.  
He blinked, before snatching her from the air and taking off his hoody, a t-shirt on beneath it, and wrapping her in it.  
"Damn it, BT, you're half frozen. What brings you out here?"  
She chirped, and Jack frowned.  
"Tooth? What about her?"  
Baby Tooth chirped again, and Jack nodded.  
"She's overworking and won't rest again?"  
Another chirp and he nodded.  
"Okay, I'll speak to her... Come on, let's get you back before your wings freeze again..."

Seriously, Baby Tooth must have been flying in the colder skies for hours and she was shivering pretty much until they reached Tooth's palace, by which time Jack had been reduced to taking off the T-shirt as well, as it was so hot.  
He landed on the room, and let the wind carry him down, drifting inside.  
He was met with a crowd of worried looking fairies, and Baby Tooth flew up, telling them to let him through.  
Jack drifted through the palace, until Baby Tooth gestured to the Tooth Sorting room and Jack looked inside to see Tooth, clearly exhausted, and feverishly checking over stacks of teeth.  
He landed lightly, and knocked on the door, causing Tooth to look up and smile.  
"Jack! Are you okay?"  
"Yeah. Someone else nearly wasn't though."  
She blinked, and Jack elaborated.  
"One of the coldest places in the world at the moment, and Baby Tooth went there to find me. She was worried about you..."  
"I-I'm fine! Is Baby Tooth ok-?"  
"She's fine. Wouldn't have been though if she hadn't found me when she did... I thought you said you wouldn't overwork yourself again?"  
She blinked at the serious tone in the usually fun, mischievous boy, and sighed.  
"I'm fine... I told Baby Tooth I was fine."  
"She didn't seem to think so... Tooth, you look like you're about to fall from the air..."  
"I'm fine! There was just a little more to do the last few weeks-"  
"Weeks? I said you could come find me if you needed help-"  
"I'm fine!" Tooth burst out, feverishly, and glared at the winter spirit. "I don't need to be told how to do my job when I've been doing it for years! Why don't you go off and have some fun like you usually do!?"  
She froze when she realised how that sounded, and, sure enough, Jack blinked, before his eyes took on the cold, glacier look that shielded the fact he was hurting. Still, he didn't leave.  
"You need to get some sleep, Tooth... If not, I'll get Sandy in here to throw dream sand at you."  
Baby Tooth flew to her, angrily chirping in her ear, and she nodded.  
"Okay... Jack, I-"  
"Forget it... I-er... I've got to go."  
It was only then that she noticed how warm he looked, and she could have smacked herself.  
It was the middle of summer, in one of the hottest places in Asia, and the winter spirit had come here anyway.  
She went to fly towards him, but he backed away slightly, and she felt like crying.  
Jack was right. If she'd been sleeping, she would not have said that... Jack wouldn't look like he was about to faint... Heck, he wouldn't have had to come here at all!  
"Go on Jack, it's too hot for you here..."  
"Promise you'll get some sleep...?"  
"Yeah, straight away..."  
"Okay... Tell me if she doesn't BT..."  
The small fairy gave a chirp, and shoved him towards the door, getting worried about the increase of heat on his skin. Jack grinned at her, before flying off, and letting the wind carry him, a little faster than normal due to the worry it seemed to have about its little spirit, until he was finally back in a colder climate and buried himself in a snowdrift for an hour or two.  
_

A couple of days later, Tooth flew in the window at Santoff Claussen, and hurried to find North.  
After she had found the huge guardian, she had told him what happened between her and Jack, and the other guardian was looking at her in disappointment.  
"Tooth, this is big problem. You are not sleeping?"  
"I'm fine now North..."  
"But it should not have taken Jack almost going into comatose to make you fine. Was irresponsible and Jack and Baby Tooth could have been hurt."  
"I know... He's okay though, right?"  
"Yes. He came here two days ago and stayed the night. Looked tired and much hurt Tooth. Then he went and I have not seen him. Bunny might know where he is. Those two are close as brothers, though they do not admit it."  
North smiled at the thought, until he thought back to how Jack had looked. He had said he was fine, but looked completely exhausted and seemed upset... Now he knew why. As for where the boy was now...  
"Okay... What about what I said to him? He looked so hurt North..."  
"Then you have to fix it. He has heart of gold. He will forgive you."  
Tooth nodded, and caught the orb North threw to her.  
She stated the destination, the warren, and flew through, letting it close behind her.  
She flew down, and spotted Bunnymund sat on the edge of one of the dye lakes, relaxing in the few months lull that he always got after Easter.

He sat up as she arrived, and frowned at her, jabbing a paw.  
"What did ya do to Jack? He came 'ere yesterday, looking completely outta sorts, and said something about needing a place to hang loose for a while. The only other thing I got was your name and somethin' about Baby Tooth..."  
"I- I haven't been sleeping very well. Baby Tooth flew to find Jack, and brought him to the palace. He wasn't happy that she had had to fly to find him, and pretty much ordered me to get some sleep. Then I-I pretty much told him to go be his usual self as I did actual work... Or that's how it sounded. I didn't mean it but-"  
"Didn't mean it?! There've been snowstorms over the mountains over there since 'e arrived! You know that only 'appens when 'e's upset Tooth!"  
She nodded, her guilt notching even higher, and Bunnymund scowled at her, before opening a tunnel.  
"I'm gonna tell him you're 'ere..."  
Tooth nodded as Bunnymund left, and started pacing in the air. It was several minutes later that Bunny appeared again.  
"Jack said 'e'd fly down. You'd better try and sort this, Tooth."  
She nodded and Bunnymund left again, still not happy with the other guardian.  
Tooth was flitting back and forth nervously for a few minutes, until Jack silently landed beside her, his emotionless mask in place. She hated it when he wore that expression.  
"Hey Tooth..."  
"Jack... Oh Jack I'm sorry. I never meant what I said the other day... I didn't mean it to come out that way. I was just stressed and tired and... Well, it's no excuse-"  
"It's okay..." Jack's expression had lightened slightly, though he still seemed angry about something.  
"It wasn't just that. It's Baby Tooth. She might have frozen if she didn't find me when she did! She could barely fly..."  
"I know... I'm never going to let it happen again, I promise. I'm sorry Jack. And making you come to the palace in the middle of summer... You could have-"  
"I'm fine..."  
She looked sceptical, but he gave her a grin, all of the hurt gone from his eyes to be replaced by their usual sparkle.  
"Honest..." He held his arms out for a hug, and she quickly pulled him into one.  
"I'm sorry Sweet tooth..."  
"It's okay... Honest... Just be more careful?"  
She smiled.  
"And I thought I was supposed to be the parental figure..."  
Jack grinned, before smiling as Bunnymund arrived back.  
"Ya feelin betta Frostbite?"  
"Yeah... Sorry for the whole storm thing..."  
"Don't worry about it... Not like the mountains are used for anythin' anyway. Anyway, I thought you wanted a rematch with the Kickboxing?"  
Jack grinned, and both other guardians smiled at seeing it again.  
"Not fair. Kangaroo's are clearly gonna be better at kickboxing."  
"Oi. Watch it snowflake... I'm not above getting the eggs to attack you..."  
"Well, it's not like they can fly or-"  
He blinked as several eggs appeared, all sporting golden wings, and Jack glared at the sky.  
"Not fair Sandy!"  
Laughter echoed as the golden guardian appeared, and gave a ridiculously innocent expression, causing Jack to laugh again.  
"Yeah. Like anyone else can create golden wings..."  
Tooth grinned as they had a very one sided argument, before realising she had to head back.  
She gave Jack a quick hug, smiling at the wide grin, before flying down to Bunny, who had gestured for her.  
"Yeah?"  
"You're lucky he's so forgiving Tooth... You don't wanna risk ruinin' things."  
"I know. I was stupid, I was irresponsible...It won't happen again Aster."  
"Right... You'd better get going Tooth."  
"Yeah." She waved to the other two, who were arguing about the possibility that the eggs could have evolved to grow wings, before flying off.  
North and Bunnymund had been right.  
And she had no intention of letting things repeat themselves...

She smiled as Baby Tooth chirped at her, as she arrived back into the palace, and nodded.  
"Go on then... He's in the warren. Go say hi to Peter Pan, Tinkerbell..."  
Baby Tooth chirped, giggling, as she zoomed off, and Tooth smiled, then yawned.  
Maybe she ought to sleep for a bit...

* * *

**Hmmm... A bit OOC? Im not sure... This one was kinda tricky to write.  
And I think it's about time we learnt something else about Jack's past... Hmm... *lightbulb flicks on above my head*  
Anyway, please review and let me know what you thought, or to give me any ideas!**  
**Hopefully see y'all next chapter!**

**Raven xx**


	5. Signs of a Nightmare

**Again, a few weeks time skip... So it must be quite late in the year now :D**  
**As usual, thanks to all readers and reviewers! You guys are all awesome! *Huge hugs...*  
****And welcome to Qwerty124, AnaEI92, ieatlorriesforbreakfast,chrisfanatic3, treehugger13, Hippopotamus Hypothesis, sakuradancer3 and Alice Nightray, who have all faved and/or followed since the last chapter!**

**This is gonna be part one in a possible two or three(maybe four at a stretch), because I think it's time Jack let his prankster side out :D  
Oh, but there is a bit of angst and a bit more about Jack's past in this one! **

**Anyway's, Enjoy!  
**

* * *

Jack yawned as he settled down on the snowy slopes. He was too tired to fly off to the pole, or to the warren to sleep, and here was as good as anywhere. If he was honest, he missed sleeping on the lower slopes of the mountains. It was cool, quiet, aside from the wind, and there was always the chance of an avalanche... If he was lucky. Lately, it had either been the pole, the warren or near the pool that he had been sleeping, and it was refreshing to get a change of scene.  
He let himself drift off, unaware of the nightmare that was waiting for him...

Sandy smiled as he felt the happy dreams of the children, as Pitch's latest attempts at nightmares fell under his golden sand... Then he frowned as he felt fear in someone's dreams... Honing in on it, he froze as he recognised it as Jack's mind, and flew towards the younger guardian as fast as he could.  
He landed next to the shivering boy, and poured golden sand into the nightmare. It was a bad one. It seemed to combine the winter spirit's human life, his death, his loneliness, his fears, the wars, the pain... It was clearly something Pitch had put a lot of effort into.  
But slowly and surely, he managed to limit the effects of the black sand, and Jack started waking up.  
Before he could finish however, a familiar laugh sounded behind him and he scowled at Pitch.  
"Nice show, Sandman. That nightmare took a lot of effort to make... I have to say, the fear was delicious... But that was not all. No, it finally managed to drag you within my grasp..."  
Sandy conjured several golden whips from the air, and gave Pitch a 'come get me then' gesture.  
He managed to fend off the first wave of nightmares, trying to protect Jack at the same time, as the other guardian fought to throw off the rest of the nightmare that gripped him.  
Pitch laughed as the last of the nightmares vanished, and whistled, calling dozens more to the scene.  
A cry of attack had them all racing towards Sandy, but before they could get close, a bright blue light burst from behind him, knocking them all back.  
Sandy shielded his eyes with a golden pair of sunglasses as he watched Jack freeze and destroy the nightmares. He tried to find Pitch, but the Nightmare King had vanished, clearly sensing he had lost, and he scowled.  
The last of the nightmares vanished, and Jack seemed to finally get his bearings.  
"Sandy...?"  
The younger guardian fell to the ground, huddling against the wall, shaking.

Sandy flew over and settled next to him, holding a load of sand with a question mark.  
Jack shook his head.  
"No... No thanks Sandy. I'm not in the mood for sleeping tonight..."  
Sandy, not for the first time, wished he could speak, and, frustrated, started signing what he couldn't say.  
Jack, however, looked at him startled, and started signing himself.  
_You sign?_  
Sandy looked astonished. None of the other guardians could sign...  
_Yes... you?  
Apparently..._  
The Sandman smiled. Even signing, the boy could be sarcastic and jokey.  
_You never said.  
_Jack grinned, shrugging._  
Charades is much too fun. None of the others can sign?  
No. Makes a nice change.  
Glad to help... wait, what are you doing here? What about...  
_Jack gave up on signing Pitch, and reverted to speaking.  
"Why was Pitch here?"  
_Made a nightmare specifically focused for you. He attacked before I could finish destroying it. It was bad?  
_Jack nodded, shuddering again.  
"Yeah... I think it may have taken the top spot..."  
_Are you okay?_  
"I- I don't think so. But I will be... Just give it a few hours and I'll be fine."  
_Do you want to go to the pole?_  
"Nah... It's nearly morning anyway. I'll head up there in a few hours."  
_Then I'll stay here._  
Jack blinked,  
"But you need to head out and do your dreams..."  
_Done enough for tonight. You need me more._  
"I- Thanks Sandy..."  
_No problem. You've been alone too long._ _Shouldn't have had to deal with nightmares alone._  
"I'm used to it... Anyway, your dream sand kept most of them away..."  
_You slept near dream sand?_  
"Nope. Just ran my hand through a stream of it, whenever I could, before I slept. It helped make the nightmares better..."

Sandy couldn't believe it. How had he not noticed the young spirit's nightmares before? True, the dream sand would have helped with them, but surely he should have sensed...  
"Sandy? If you're feeling guilty, don't. Please... It's hard enough making the others believe I'm okay..."  
_And you are okay?_  
Jack rolled his eyes, with a grin.  
"Yeah. Better than I've been in a long time thanks to you guys... Why look at the past when you can focus on the present?"  
Sandy paused, then smiled.  
_You are smarter then we give you credit for._  
"Thanks. Coming from a guy who's older than anything, that means a lot..."  
Sandy held up a ball of dream sand in warning, and Jack laughed, holding his hands up.  
"Fine, Fine. Shutting up."  
Then he grinned and started signing again.  
_This is gonna be great. We can talk and the others will have no idea what we are saying.  
_Sandy had to laugh. Trust the guardian of fun to think of something so... Fun.  
_Yes. I'm thinking pranks will be easier?  
_Jack's face lit up._  
Oh yes! This is going to be great!  
__

The following morning, they both arrived at Santoff Claussen, grinning like idiots, and North looked between them, bemused.  
"What is so funny?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Oh nothing. Pitch attacked last night, we fought him off. We discovered we can both do sign language, and life is great!"  
Sandy likewise grinned, then made a series of hand gestures to Jack, which had him rolling his eyes and signing back. North knew it was sign language, but he had never been able to pick up on it.  
They signed for a few more moments, before Jack nodded, gave the other guardian a hug, before flying off.  
"He is going to sleep?"  
A nod.  
"Is he okay?"  
Another nod, with a sad smile.  
"... Good. And he can sign!"  
A very happy nod, followed by a devious smile as Sandy flew out the window.  
North froze. That smile...  
Turning, he ran to the globe and activated the lights.

A few minutes later, Tooth and Bunnymund arrived, scowling at the lack of imminent danger. The North spoke, face white,.  
"We have problem. Forget Pitch, this is big, big problem. Jack can do sign language with Sandy, and he is guardian of fun da?"  
The other two nodded, not sure they liked where this was going.  
"And he plays lots of pranks and such da?"  
They nodded again.  
North sighed.  
"Before Sandy left, he gave mischief smile. After speaking with Jack in sign language."  
The other two gasped, and North nodded.  
"Da. They must have teamed up in prank crusade. Comrades... Friends. It has been honour knowing you. Now, I say each guardian for themselves..."  
Bunny nodded, gasping hands with North and Tooth, before literally diving into a tunnel, thinking about which of the small tunnels was the best hiding place, and the best defence formation and weapons for his eggs.  
Tooth hugged North, then made her own escape, planning what kind of defences she should give her palace, and debating whether or not to arm her fairies... then again, with the love they held for Jack Frost, maybe she would be safer alone.  
North blinked, as he realised he was alone, then legged it to the workshop, no doubt to suit up and get a yeti bodyguard.  
From the window, the guardian of fun and the guardian of dreams watched.  
Before giving identical, maniacal grins.  
This was going to be brilliant...

* * *

**Next... Prank Crusade! It will definately take up another one or two chapters, for what I have planned, a****nd it's also got a lot of focus on Sandy! (Which comes with the worry that he might be OOC, so please let me know what you think?)**

And yes, Jack can do sign language... Not sure why, but I figured he might as well have gotten something else out of his 300 year solitude and it I think it adds something to his character that he was patient enough to learn it (I gave up part way through my course... *sigh* Life gets in the way of so much sometimes)... What do you guys think of it?

**Anyway, Next chapter will be up soon, and hopefully, Sandy won't be too OOC!  
Please let me know in a review?!**

**Raven xx**


	6. The Crusade Begins

**Yeah, I know... 2 updates in one day! New rule, the more reviews I get, the quicker I upload, Lol :D :D  
Thanks to SullyWullyBunny, The element girl, FrozenSakura20, mae2551 and MakinaCZ, who have faved/followed since the last chapter was up... Welcome guys, and *hugs* to everybody!  
Just gonna jump right in here... Let the Pranks begin! (Oh, and this is set straight after the last one, for anyone who's confused :D )**

* * *

Sandy grinned as Jack explained his ideas and how to carry them out. It appeared he had had these plans for some time, but had needed a partner.  
Frankly, Sandy was honoured. The only one who could beat Jack's penchant for pranks was old April Fool, and to have Jack actually helping him get his revenge? This was going to be great!  
Especially as he had a very specific prank-that the others had played on him-to make up for...  
He had to admit, the detail that went into the plans was genius. Jack had even anticipated the actions of the three other guardians, and used them against them...  
Sandy realised that he really should not ever let Jack meet April Fool... It would mean the end of the world as they knew it...  
With a grin, he high fived Jack, and they both head off to make preparations.  
For the first time in quite some time, the old guardian felt ridiculously young...  
_

North stared at the two other guardians, one gold and one white, and frowned from behind his Yeti shield.  
"Sandy... Jack... What brings you to Pole?"  
"Just dropping by..."  
Sandy signed something, and Jack grinned.  
"Sandy says remember April Fools of 1935?"  
North went pale, and held up his hands.  
"Now Sandy, I'm sure we can be reasonable about this... I'll get Bunny and Tooth and we can discuss this like-"  
Sandy signed something again, and Jack grinned an identical evil smile.  
"Sandy says he promised vengeance... Yeah, I thought vengeance sounded cooler and more terrifying that payback-" Sandy nodded, approvingly, before Jack began again. "Sandy says he promised vengeance, and the next few weeks will make his revenge a reality... So, as a little welcome to the crusade gift... Elves! Go!"  
Fifty elves opened the lids from bottles, throwing them down, and dove behind an ice wall that Jack threw up, surrounding North and the Yeti's, which fast morphed to a dome.  
Everything inside exploded.  
A few minutes later, and with North and his chosen army completely covered in foam, the two guardians threw down their flag, covered with their new symbol –a snowflake, inside a dream bubble with a punk styled Mohican... Pretty cool Jack thought- before taking to the skies, North's curses and threats of the naughty list echoing behind them.  
Mentos and coke... Classic...  
Jack and Sandy high fived on their way to 'visit' Tooth and formally bring her into this prank war.

Tooth, wearing full Fairy battle armour, including a helmet, gave the two a suspicious look from the other side of her invisible bubble shield.  
"Jack... Sandy... How are you guys?"  
"We're good... Just had a very nice visit with North. Discovered he didn't like Mentos and Coke..."  
Tooth shivered, both from the horror of the mental sight of the foam explosion she knew had occurred, and from the amount of sugar in both coke and mentos, and was glad she had put up the invisible wall between them.  
"Ah. Sounds... Fun."  
"It was..."  
Sandy began to sign, and Jack grinned.  
"Sandy here says he has a message for you... He says, remember the Prank of 1935?"  
Tooth froze, face going pale, and Jack grinned.  
"Funny... North acted the same way... Anyway, Sandy says it is time for payback... What? I figured it would work better than the word vengeance this time..." Sandy rolled his eyes, giving a reluctant agreement, and Jack grinned.  
"Right... Anyway, where was I? Oh right. Time for payback... On three... One... Two..."  
Tooth was literally close to biting her nails now, and was wondering whether it had been a good idea to trust the few dozen fairies she had chosen... Ah well too late now...  
"Three!"  
With a swirl, a gust of wind-he had the wind on his side? Tooth nearly cursed- swirled into the room and spun in a tornado. Jack threw a load of pink powder into the air, and Sandy formed a sand wall around the spinning horror.  
Then Tooth realised what it was, and gasped.  
No... They wouldn't... They hadn't... But they had.  
It was a giant... Candy Floss Maker!  
The make-shift monstrocity eventually exploded, littering the entire room, and many of the corridors beyond it, with pink fluff. Made entirely of sugar...  
The two high fived, before flying out, leaving Tooth to threaten them with... wait, was she threatening to_ floss_ them for the rest of eternity?  
Sandy grinned. This was better than anything he could have come up with himself...  
But the first prank they were going to play on Bunny? Oh, this was going to be fantastic...

Bunny, having been warned of the horror's that his friends had succumbed to, decided to just get the guardians of the warren to block the entrances...  
What he didn't realise was that Jack had been prepared for this eventuality for quite some time, and had dug his own tunnel that went from beyond the curve of one of the tunnels up through next to the rivers of dye.  
Sandy had been amused by the obvious preparation that the kid would put into his pranks, and was sure they should be considered an art form.  
They quietly drifted through the tunnel, and peeked over the ridge, to see egg patrols, each of the small things armed with what looked to be mini dye spray guns, and Bunny himself stood on patrol.  
This was going to be tough... Or maybe not.  
"Okay Sandy, ready?"  
He nodded, and Jack grinned, just as Bunny caught sight of them.  
"Okay, NOW!"  
Before Bunnymund could do more than blink, he had been hit with a ball of dream sand. The eggs were likewise coated with the stuff, and Jack grinned as he motioned for his own forces, namely the elves he had managed to recruit into his service for the payment of him not pranking them for half a decade, to get out the eggs he had prepared for this.  
Each blue egg, a snowflake pattern covering it, took the place of the-now sleeping- eggs, which Sandy moved to a safe place, the other side of the northern half of the warren. Then Sandy went about hanging up a variety of Christmas lights, sneakily borrowed from North's old workshop rooms, and various other Christmas decoration around the whole area of the warren, as Jack turned it into a winter wonderland.  
It was only a semi-permanent thing, as he didn't want to damage the land, and it would clear within a few hours, but it would likely push Bunny to the brink of irritation. Just to the brink... They didn't want to leave his nerves in tatters on their first run now, did they?  
Within half an hour, the place looked like the very epitome of Christmas, and, as he had done with the other guardians, Sandy was quick to take a lot of photos, which they were planning on making into a book.  
For a Christmas present for the other three.  
Then, Sandy left a message in the snow, which read  
_For the Prank of 1935... Beware E. Aster Bunnymund. This is only the beginning..._  
Then Jack couldn't help adding,  
_It's like Christmas has come early- Oh wait...  
_They only waited around to see Bunny wake up, in order to snap a few pictures of the horrified expression, and the gulp and scowl as he read the messages, before they high fived and used one of North's globes to get out, leaving Bunny to wonder how they got in, seeing as he locked his Warren from that kind of entry...  
_

An hour later, they were at their base of operations, a small, multi-roomed Ice Castle that Jack had built for this sole purpose, Sandy having no problem with the cold and the elves being used to it, and were hovering around the huge round table they had all their plans laid out on.  
Now there was just one more person to prank before they called it a day, and settled down before planning to use the next day to prepare the next bout of pranks...  
Sandy grinned as they finished the preparations for the final prank, and they both ran from the place, splitting up as Sandy went to do his job and Jack head back to finalise the next plans.  
No-one cold figure why the children's dreams were all full of pranks and such over the next few weeks...

A few hours later, North, Bunny and Tooth, who were all sat in the study making a battle plan, were astounded to see Pitch storm in.  
"Does anyone want to tell me why I returned to my place to find that the _entire area _had been _lit up_ with... _FLOODLIGHTS_? Hmm? _Anyone_? It looked like the middle of _summer_ in there!"  
It didn't take long to explain, and the Nightmare King scowled as he swept back out again, reassured that he would be left in peace... The other guardians knew that there would be no more pranks on Pitch, but still... Man, those two had guts.  
They hid their laughter as they continued with their plan- trying to ignore the sugar high fairies who seemed to have decided that by clean up, Tooth had mean eat the candy floss- deciding it would be best to stick together, and move from place to place... Not realising that, by doing this, they were doing just what the other two guardians wanted...

* * *

**Yeah, definitely going to be taking up another chapter or two... The next chapter will have lot more pranks played on the three of them, and Jack might even drag an old friend or two into it...  
But what did you think of the pranks? Evil enough?  
Please review and let me know, or to give me any prank ideasRemember, the more reviews and feedback, the quicker I can write the next updates :D Oh, and any pranks I don't use in this one, I will gladly use in another :D**


	7. Beware the Cuteness!

**Teeheehee, I like being evil :D**  
**Anyway, back to reality... Hope you enjoy the ensuing Chaos my friends!  
Oh, and thanks to the most recent followers and favers, Dreamcreator, Essenze, draconicflyer,Goldendarkness123 and Daughter of wisdom and music... You're all awesome, and hugs to everybody!**  
**So, without further ado... *straps on helmet, with evil grin*  
Lets Begin!**

* * *

It was with great trepidation that the Yeti's went about their daily business, Phil, having been made North's right hand man, was more of a target than most, and was guarded at all times by either Bunny or at least three other yeti's.  
The doors were guarded by several armed Yeti's, and there were cameras roaming the area at all times. The others were secure in the knowledge that no-one had come in, and were now being very casual with their paintball guns and big sticks.  
Jack snorted at the sight, as he hid in the rafters.  
Sticks.  
He'd show them a stick...  
With a nod to Sandy, who gave him the ready signal, he started a full blown blizzard in the workshop. Sandy had made sure to coat the remaining toys in a layer of gold, so they would not be ruined, and the elves had been casually moving the greater majority of the completed toys to other store rooms throughout the day.  
Bunny immediately started scanning the rafters, but Jack, dressed in the black bottoms and Hoody Tooth had given him, the hood managing to cover half his face, blended with the shadows perfectly.  
As for how he had gotten in there? Well, it would have been so much bother to sneak past the dozens of guards at each doorway, so Jack had just got Shady to give them a lift. The spirit had been happy to help, with the promise that he would not be a victim of one of Jacks random pranks for a full half a century, and had transported the both of them from the shadows outside Santoff Claussen to the ones in the rafters, before taking off.  
A few minutes later, and a thick layer of snow, that came up to the yeti's chests, had covered the entire workshop. It was definitely amusing to see North open a door and be thrown back as a load of snow fell through.

Eventually, he managed to fight his way in, Tooth right behind him, and gasped at the sight.  
"Where are they!"  
No-one could tell him, and he rolled his eyes.  
"Well, how could they have gotten in?"  
More blank looks, and North blinked as he realised that they could still be there...  
"Tooth! Bunny! ...Bunny?" The Pooka appeared from an uncannily high snow drift, scowling.  
"Frostbite must have targeted me specifically."  
Jack grinned. He had indeed...  
"Yes, well. They could still be here, so I want everyone in defensive formations..."  
Jack grinned at Sandy, who formed a megaphone with the sand and Jack called through it, his voice actually quite spooky, which made it all that more effective.  
"Oh, it's far too late for that... Phil...? Remember the break-in of 1967?"  
The Yeti blinked, as they all turned to him, then he blinked again, before literally fighting his way through the snow in a panic.  
North paled as he translated.  
"He says we are all doomed..."

Jack laughed, the megaphone making it even more dangerous sounding than usual.  
"Haha, so it seems that the Yeti learns after all... And this is but the beginning. Each of those odd pranks and tricks you attempted? They are nothing compared to the retaliation that is coming!"  
He looked to Sandy, who gave him a nod, and grinned.  
"So, this is for you Phil..."  
The megaphone trailed to nothing, and Jack grinned as Sandy flicked on the heaters. On full power. No-one had dared put them on full power before...  
Jack stared, awed, as the snow melted within minutes. A quick blast of cold air from him as Sandy switched off the heat had it turning to slush, and soon the entire floor was coated in it, including every one of its occupants.  
He grinned, and signed to Sandy.  
_Hey, I have a surprise... A little extra touch if you will..._  
Sandy raised an eyebrow, grinning, and Jack smiled.  
"Elves! Now!"  
Suddenly, the entire floor was being sprayed with different coloured flavourings, which mixed with the fresh snow Jack created, and coming to rest in the giant pots that the elves had set out when everyone was distracted.  
Now, not only were there actual slushy drinks, but everyone below them was a slush too...Jack raised an eyebrow at Sandy, who gave him a thumbs up, almost awed by the guardians ingenuity, and flew over, giving him a high five, before they both gave cheerful waves to those below and vanished through the door and out a window, scooping up slushy as they went, before anyone could catch them.  
There was little time for celebration as they arrived back at the Ice Palace, and went over plans for their next prank. It could be one of two, depending on where the others went, so they would have to be fast...  
_

Sandy flew off to keep an eye on the others, and, before long, a golden symbol appeared, of a Tooth.  
Jack grinned. They were heading to the Tooth Palace... Or rather, they wanted them to think that. Jack's hunch proved to be right, when he asked the wind to show which direction they were heading, and it started blowing south. The way to Bunnymunds warren...  
Jack grinned. This one would make them regret every showing him Disney...  
He found Sandy, assuring him it was fine for him to head off to get his job done, and told him he'd start preparing the prank.  
The outfits had been under construction for a while now, and Jack was glad that they would finally pay off.  
Arriving at the warren with quite a while to go before the others arrived, thanks to both their usual procedure of getting here and the wind's promise to make them take even longer, Jack set about getting the elves ready.  
For nearly two hours, they laboured away, until Jack finally stood back with a sigh.  
Perfect...  
The north half of the warren was now made up of various copies of scenes from Disney movies, including the Dwarves cottage, even down to the wood on the stove, live ice animals in the wood, the circus from Dumbo, part of a jungle, identical to a scene from Tarzan and dozens of other scenes, then, to finish it all off, the elves had been dressed up as characters.  
Willingly, much to Jack's surprise and relief.  
Sandy arrived just in time to put the finishing touches to the place, namely creating a sand version of the castle on Bunny's actual home and make a few characters, such as a golden, flying elephant, and photograph it all, before the wind warned Jack that the others were arriving.  
They hoisted up the sign, welcome to Disneyland, with their logo in the corner, above the tunnel, and hid in one of the alcoves to watch the reactions.

They were well worth it. Most of the fairies with Tooth swooned in delight at the sight, and even Tooth seemed a little taken aback at the detail and artistry of it.  
North was wondering how the hell they had managed this, with no warning that they were coming, and Bunny? Well... He was silent... For quite a while.  
Until he finally found his voice.  
"What is it with them turning the warren into a playground!?"  
"But it's so... beautiful..." Tooth said, still drinking it all in, and Jack grinned. Perfect. Now for the finishing touch...  
As one, a mound of ice bunnies appeared over the ridge, and Jack used his greatest weapon.  
"Fear the cuteness!" He cried, and the bunnies morphed into the very epitome of cute.  
Tooth pretty much fainted, the other fairies were already out on the floor, the Yeti's were all entranced, as was North, and Bunnymund? He had such a look of adoration on his face it was almost pitiful...

A few camera snapshots later, and they both ran, leaving the others to the new warren, which would melt away and disappear in a few hours, giving them time to head to the pole to rig their next prank, and also to Tooth's to prepare that one.  
The ease at which they did it was ridiculous. The remaining Yeti's got knocked into a sleep that would last for long enough for their plan to work, and the fairies that were left in the palace were so occupied with Jack and the outfit he was in, and doing their own work, that they didn't pay much attention to what the two guardians were doing.  
Which was lucky really... Because they had gone for one of the most classic pranks in the book, but up-scaled it to a degree that they wouldn't have been able to do it in secret.  
Sandy grinned as he rigged the camera's, ready to record the events, and flew off to share the dreams. He was honestly having the most fun he had had in... well, in a very long time.  
He wasn't quite sure what he was going to make it up to the guardian of fun, but he was definitely going to try.  
He wasn't even finding it difficult to shield the children from the nightmares, and filled their dreams with fun and jokes, letting the children of Burgess, Jack's friends, know what was actually going on in their dreams. He had no doubt that they would be asking to help the next time Jack visited.  
_

After the wonders that had been in the warren had disappeared, North, Bunny and Tooth had all been debating where to go next. Their circular reasoning was driving Tooth insane.  
Jack might suspect them of going to the Pole, to throw him off guard, but then, he might know they would do the opposite to throw him off guard even more because he would not expect them to. But he might expect them to, in which case, they were better going to the Palace... Or wait, was it the Pole? GAH!  
Of course, they could just stay there, but all of them, though they would never admit it, were having the most fun they had had in ages. And from the little they had seen of Sandy, the oldest guardian was having as much, if not more fun, than them. So they debated on where to go.  
Not that it really mattered... seeing as each place was rigged. But they didn't need to know that.  
Eventually, thankfully for the still sleeping Yeti's, they decided to go to the Pole.  
First, it was nearer, second, it had cookies, and third, Tooth had work to do.  
It was an unspoken rule that they never interfered with Tooth's or Sandy's work, or with Jack when it was pressing, and never with North or Bunny on the run up to their respective holidays. So Tooth was safe as she skimmed to the palace, not noticing thankfully, the prank the two had rigged. The fairies, after Jack had promised them he would read them Romeo and Juliet and two other god forsaken love stories, had agree to keep quiet, and so Tooth passed a few hours in the palace easily enough, before heading up to the pole, only to be caught by Jack, and told that it might be a good idea to just stay in the study, seeing as the prank had begun.  
Tooth had to congratulate them on their planning. They had taken into account that she needed to work, and when, and how long for, and so had planned the only prank where her flying would have helped for a time she wasn't there. It was because of her respect for the genius, and the chance for a break, that she agreed to sit it out, in the study, and Jack gave her a hug, before vanishing again.  
Tooth sighed before settling down to nap for a while.

North and Bunny, and the Yeti's stuck with them, were not so lucky. A maze, made entirely of solid ice and dream sand, filled the workshop. And, not only was it hard to navigate, but random portals, barrages of snow and slush and paint balloons were constantly being thrown at them.  
When they weren't cursing, they were wondering just how they hell the other two were able to have done this so fast. True, Jack was an expert prankster, but this stuff was just a complete level up from the usual pranks...  
So this was what happened when he had a partner...  
North was now almost entirely blue, thanks to the paint, Bunny was still brushing snow out of his fur that just refused to melt, as well as being covered in blue and pink paint, and the Yeti's were... well. Greens, blues, pinks, yellows... They were a mismatch of dozens of different colours.  
It actually gave North a idea for a teddy design... But that could wait.  
Two barrages of snow and paint later, and they finally found the exit. As soon as North's hand touched the door, the maze melted away, revealing a stack of sleeping Yeti's, all dressed in Tutu's. Most likely courtesy of the elves, with small notes stuck into them.  
No doubt as payback for something...  
North just carried on. No way was he getting in the way of those two... Walking into his study, they found Tooth asleep on one of the chairs, and sat down themselves, the elves rushing in with plates of cookies.  
North took one, absent mindedly, and took a bite. Before spitting it back out and running to get eggnog... Though it wasn't likely to help.  
"Curry powder... Lots of it..." he gasped to Bunny, the Pooka blinked, before grinning.  
Okay, it was small and cliché, but he had to admit, the kid thought of everything...  
Then he read the note that appeared.  
"Courtesy of Sandy eh? Well, well, looks like Jack's been training him well... North? We have problem."  
"Not including two guardians waging war with us?"  
"In a way. It appears Sandy has been learning a few tricks of his own..."  
"... Damn."  
"North!" Tooth exclaimed, waking up, "What have I told you about cursing in front of my fairies?"  
"But Jack is training Sandy to prank..."  
"Damn it all to the moon and back..." Then Tooth blinked, hand across her mouth, as the other two grinned. Bunny snorted.  
"This is how we know things are going all to hell." he said, stretching and lounging back. "Ah well, I'm gonna try and get some sleep before they do..."

It was, of course, at that point that a snowball hit him in the face. Jack snapped a picture of Bunny's expression, and the others as North cried 'Hit the deck!' and they all dove to the floor, seeing as Sandy had had to get going and give out dreams. Then he grinned. He might not even bother sending another one. The reactions would be even funnier if that was all the threat they needed.  
Then they started poking their heads up, and he rolled his eyes at himself.  
Who was he kidding?  
Within seconds, he had over fifty snowballs made and ready to fire, and decided to just send them in a barrage.  
"First rank... Fire!"  
Ten of the snowballs left formation and entered the window, piling onto Bunny and sending him toppling to the floor.  
"Second Rank! Fire!" Ten more, and Tooth joined Bunny.  
"Third Rank Fire!" This time, fifteen soared in, managing to make North topple backwards and land on Bunny.  
"Fourth Rank! Fire!" The remaining fifteen shot through the window, and the curses and yelps were well worth the small effort behind them.  
He grinned as he formed fifty more, and was about to fire them in order again, then stopped, with an evil grin.  
Bunny, inside the study, managed to catch a glimpse of him, focused in on the grin, then realised he had another barrage of snowballs ready, and blinked.  
"Oh. Oh no. North! Tooth! Get Down!"  
He dove behind the desk, and North and Tooth, catching sight of the same thing Bunny had, joined him there.  
Jack grinned. This was going to be great... After making sure the elves were in position to take photos, he grinned and gestured to the wind. The other windows in the study burst open and, before the three guardians could so anything about it, snowball after snowball came whizzing in from all directions, the wind whipping them into a frenzy.  
Jack waited until the last snowball had disappeared, got a nod from the small elf to tell him that he had photos, and gave an elaborate bow as Bunny glared at him from the window.  
"We'll get ya for this, Frostbite!"  
Jack grinned.  
Yeah, right.  
Laughing, he let the wind carry him back to the ice palace, where he gratefully sank down in the chair, yawning. Maybe it was time to take a break...  
_

The next day was not as eventful, but marked the end of the bigger pranks.  
They had all decided to relocate to Tooth's palace, to get it all over and done with. Of course, they didn't know-and the fairies didn't tell them- that Jack and Sandy were waiting to set off their trap.  
They waited until they were in the centre of the small hall, and Bunny sniffed the air, eras twitching.  
"Guys? It's quiet... Too quiet..."  
Jack gave a chilling laugh, which he had been practising with Sandy.  
"There is a reason for that!"  
Sandy grinned, and tugged on the rope, an honour Jack had been quick to grant him. Immediately, the huge tarp fell to the floor, the wind whipping it out of the way as dozens of paint balloons fell from the ceiling where they had been being held up. They all exploded on impact and the fairies, who had all safely evacuated, started squealing with laughter at the sight of the three guardians, all covered from head to toe with white, blue and yellowy-gold paint, with huge shcked expressions on their faces, as if they weren't sure whether to scowl or laugh.  
Jack grinned again.  
"And, without further ado, let the official crusade begin!"  
They both flew out, Sandy having snapped a few photos whilst the others had been distracted, and Jack gave a joyful laugh as he span through the air, taking the camera from Sandy as he head off to spread dreams again.  
His plan to make the guardians have as much fun as he possibly could was working perfectly... And this was only the beginning...  
The next couple of weeks were definitely going to be interesting...

* * *

**Do we want to hear Jack read the fairies a story? WITH AN ACCENT...?  
Of course we do, so that will be one of the next fics after the prank crusade finishes. And any suggestions for one of the other stories he could read? Or maybe even a poem or song...? Hmm, I think it would be about time they discovered another thing about Jack and his past in that fic...**

**But for now, Pranks play the lead roll!  
One more chapter I think, just to round it off :D  
Please review and let me know what you think!  
**

**Oh, and will hopefully be updating daily for the next few days, possibly twice daily if I get the time to write them :D**


	8. Ending Things With A Bang And Cookies

**Here it is... The BIG ONE! The one we've all been waiting for... THE SHOWDOWN!  
I know, two updates in a day! As a thanks for the influx of reviews :D  
Thanks to StoryTagger2, Invader Jor and sugarart, who have all faved and/or followed since the last chapter was uploaded. Welcome to the ride!**  
**Revel in the chaos everybody!**

* * *

The next couple of weeks were some of the most fun, embarrassing and curse worthy weeks that the guardians had ever experienced.  
Prank after prank was played, both by Sandy and by Jack.  
Some of the most memorable had been when North had gone to his sleigh, planning on messing with the engine, like he always did, only to find it covered- and by covered, it meant none of it's surface_ at all_ visible- by sticky notes. Hundreds and hundreds of sticky notes. Blues, greens, oranges, yellows and pinks. Of course, they couldn't help but be appreciative of the pretty butterfly's and flower patterns that the sticky notes made... Didn't mean that they weren't irritated when they all had to spend half an hour clearing it off, only to finally get to their feet and get blasted at with explosions of streamers, confetti and glitter. After the glue of course, because where is the fun of getting covered in Confetti and glitter without being covered in glue first?  
Jack and Sandy had got some very amusing photos from that particular escapade...  
Then there was the time Jack had got bored of just spiking North's biscuits with curry powder and what not, and had decided to kind of apologise to Tooth for turning her palace into a foam bath, when they had exploded water and bubble mixture and various other things from hoses at the windows, and scrape all of the vanilla cream from in North's oreo's-a task he delagated to the elves- and replaced it with toothpaste. Mint toothpaste, because he was that much nicer...  
The disgusted yelps given by North, and then Bunny, and the delighted giggles from Tooth had had Jack laughing so hard it hurt, and Sandy had been in a silent laughing fit of his own.  
Then they had 'borrowed' an orb from North, and Jack had waded into a freezing cold river up to his knees before placing the orb under the surface and opening a portal to Santoff Claussen. The yelping, wet Yeti's had been one of the most amusing sights yet, especially when one of them tumbled into a stack of footballs and sent them tumbling around the room, causing another-Bob Jack thought- to wail and run in circles. Even if he had only kept it open for a second or two... Wasn't his fault that the portal opened above their heads... Cue far too innocent grin.  
Then Tooth. Jack had got Baby Tooth in on a prank, and had created a fake, yet perfect Tooth. Tooth, in her hurry to squeal in delight and coo over it, hadn't taken the time to even consider testing it, and it had exploded over her, Bunny and North getting spattered as well, with Honey, blue and yellow food colouring and sugar.  
Even now, they had no idea how they managed to pack all of it into the tooth... They were sure it was magic of somekind, but how...  
They hadn't had time to figure it out before they were being sprayed with even more glue and three glitter bombs had exploded above their heads, coating them in the sparkling stuff. It was a nightmare to get it out fur and feathers...  
Jack and Sandy had deebated about using such a similar prank, but in the end agreed that it was just too good not to.

It eventually got to a point where North took to wearing pretty much full battle armour, Tooth was keeping herself in a protective bubble and Bunny was armed to the teeth with paint balloons, paint guns with over the top amounts of ammunition and smoke bombs. That was after the Burgess kids had cornered them, under Jack's orders, and bombarded them with coloured paint, stink bombs, water bombs, flour bombs and pretty much anything else they could think of... including some creative ideas of their own, such as flour _already_ mixed with water, sticks-Jack still wasn't sure why, but the yelps from Bunny had been amusing- and trying to trap them with ropes, which ended in North being pulled upside down, hanging from a tree, and being attacked with paint.  
None of them had seen any sign of any other spirits, and eventually found out that as soon as they heard Jack Frost was on a Prank Crusade, with the aid of the dream giver, most had gone into hiding. Jack's pranks were legendary... Of course, this made him and April Fool bitter rivals, making it even more important to keep them away from each other.  
Of course, it all had to come to a close at some point or other, and they all knew it was going to be big...  
_

North had taken to cooking his own meals, even though he was useless at it, or making sure he was stood watching the whole process, after he had received four batches of chilli cookies, one batch of extra salty and one batch of-he shuddered again-sugar free...  
And he was now stood in the kitchen, pulling a batch of brownies from the oven, He had just stood up when he heard a terrifyingly familiar voice,  
"Hey North."  
The brownies went flying as he span, falling backwards, and looking at the grinning guardian of fun, who had, of course, snapped a picture of it, though North wasn't aware of the fact. Heck, none of the guardians knew that they had been being photographed over the course of the last few weeks.  
"Ah, Jack. What brings you to Pole?"  
"Oh, nothing much... Just came by to say Hi..." He had snatched a few brownies from the air and took a bite from one, giving it a surprised nod.  
"Hey, these are good! Could use some chocolate chips though... Anyway, I just came to let you know that the game is nearly up. We have but one more prank, then we're calling it quits."  
"Ah... Is Bunny and Tooth being-"  
"Sandy wanted to let those two know... Anyway, just a heads up. See ya North... Oh, and nice armour!"  
With that, he swept out, munching on the brownies, and North took a deep breath.  
A few second later, Tooth flew in at the window, and it wasn't long before Bunny poked his head around the door.  
North cracked his knuckles.  
"Comrades, this era is coming to close. We must prepare for all out war with pranksters."  
Bunny nodded, and grinned.  
"Damn right, and I've 'ad a stash a' stuff ready for such an occasion, ever since Sandy threatened to get us back over half a century ago. 'Fraid I armed the Yeti's with most of it though, so please tell me ya got something for this North?"  
The big man nodded, with a smile.  
"Da... I have been prepared in secret for this day since Sandy vowed his revenge. Is good to know it will not be wasted. Come!"  
A few minutes later, Tooth and Bunny were staring, grinning in both surprise and glee, as they took in the contents of the store room.  
"Mate, ya got enough for a small army in there..."  
"Da. But more than enough for us. We will not go down without fighting..."  
They all grinned before heading in to suit and arm up.

Jack arrived back at the palace at the same time as Sandy.  
"They get the message?"  
He nodded, and signed quickly. Jack was now even better at signing, and could understand Sandy without a second's thought.  
"So they will have secret stashes of weapons for this kind of thing? Jeez, what did they do all those years ago to be so afraid of you?"  
Sandy just shrugged, and Jack rolled his eyes. All he had got out of the older guardian was something about sand not going well with water.  
"Well, they may be armed to the teeth, but they won't be the only ones."  
Now for the moment that Sandy had been waiting for. Apparently a couple of spirits Jack knew had been hoarding his extreme prank gear for years, in payment for not being victim to them, and now Jack was bringing them out to play.  
Sandy watched, first in amusement, then shock as Jack made trip after trip, returning with different things that ended up piling into a pile that was taller than ten stacked elves...  
Eventually, Jack dusted his hands, and began sorting through it, arming not only himself and Sandy, but also the elves as well.  
He'd also roped Shady into it, as well as gotten a few of the Yeti's, who had decided it would be fun to be traitors, suited up.  
Eventually, they were all armed with smoke bombs and grenades, paint bombs, water bombs, flour bombs, slingshots with ice cubes, streamers, hose packs filed with a sweet, sticky candyfloss type mixture that could be sprayed up to thirty feet, paintball guns with belts of ammunition in blue, white and yellow and larger weapons, such as tennis ball machines rigged to fire snowballs instead of tennis balls.  
They were planning on using their larger weapons first, before relying on hand to hand combat, and so Sandy had created another cannon type machine with his gold sand that could fire snowballs as well, which he was eager to recreate.  
After all, it wouldn't do to send half the field to sleep with dream sand, and he did want to be useful in some way...  
Eventually it got to a point where Jack was satisfied, and he gave Sandy a high five.  
Then Sandy shot off, and Jack got the others to hoist up flags with their symbol on it, which he had also spray painted onto the Yeti's back, and the elves hats.  
He, himself, was wearing his black bottoms and Hoody, and had even tied a piece of black fabric around his forehead, matching the elves as he painted stripes on their cheeks in blue and gold paint.  
If they were doing this, they were doing it in style.  
_

The other three guardians, who were just taking a breather before suiting up properly themselves, all jumped when Sandy arrived, dressed in full combat gear, and he gave them a series of symbols which were easy to interpret.  
_One hour... Outside Santoff Claussen on the plain to the north... Be there...  
_Then he flew off, leaving the others to rush and get ready, looking very worried at what Sandy was wearing, and wondering just what Jack had up his sleeves, and also arming the Yeti's that were still there.  
Before long, they were all suited up, armed with a similar array of weapons to Jack and Sandy, but with an actual cannon. Of course, North had only rigged it to fire vast amounts of cookies, but still...  
Tooth had her fairies, all dressed in warm winter gear, armed with mini slingshots and tiny teeth that North had invented, that exploded on contact with honey or green, pick or red food colouring- because two could play at that game- and Bunny was manning the cannon as North led the Yeti's. They knew how it went. Large weapons, then the ground forces...  
They blinked as they saw Jack flying in, likely knowing that half the fairies would go whoozy at the sight of him dressed like Rambo, sleeves rolled up, paint on his face and his hair flying in the wind, and, as several of the fairies withdrew, even more staring at him in complete adoration, Tooth sighed and face palmed.  
The next to arrive was Sandy, coming in to the sound of golden speakers playing Rise of the Valkyries, before changing to trumpets and playing a cavalry march as the few Yeti's and elves arrived.  
North blinked at the array of things they had. How the hell was Jack able to get hold of all this stuff?  
But that was a question for another time as Sandy created a cannon type machine from the sand, himself at the helm with a helmet, and Jack swirled his staff, creating hundreds of snowballs in the air.  
He gave them all an evil grin, before directing them into the tennis machine and Sandy's, each of which immediately started firing at the other group.  
"Return Fire!" North cried, and cookies began to fly.  
Thus, it began...

For several minutes, the larger weapons were firing, until Sandy finally decided he'd better give it a rest, and Jack directed the last of his ammunition into the tennis machine, which spat snowballs out for a few more moments before falling silent.  
A quick gust of wind swept the last of the cookies over the heads, or to the feet of the elves, like it had been doing for most of the barrage, and the cookies too stopped.  
Grinning, Jack pulled his paintball gun from around his shoulders and clicked the catch, loading a round. At the ominous click, the others immediately began doing the same, and Jack waited until they had done so before taking the catch off of a smoke grenade and tossing it into no-mans land. The other guardians moved just as it hit the ground, and Jack grinned.  
"Okay wind... Now!"  
The smoke began to curl around, and Jack ran forward, Sandy right beside him, firing at the blurred figures. They were rewarded with yelps and tumbles, before the smoke cleared and they could really start.  
Smoke bombs, Paint bombs, flour and water bombs, fake teeth and miniature cookies flew everywhere. The elves began to work in pairs, under Sandy's instruction, one with flour and one with water, making sludge monsters of the Yeti's as dozens of elves teamed up on each one.  
The battle cries would have made anyone think world war three was happening, but, in a way, it was...  
The other Yeti's were busy blasting at North and the Fairies, and Sandy was focused on Tooth, both laughing as they threw paint at each other. That left Jack with...  
Bunny.  
Bunnymund grinned as Jack landed in front of him, and juggled a couple of paint balloons.  
"Come on then, snowflake... Let's see what ya got..."  
A temporary truce swept over everyone else as they watched the two.  
For over ten minutes, they leapt, dodged, ducked, rolled and threw various balloons, snowballs and-when Bunny had started getting short on ammunition- elves at each other, before eventually running out, and diving behind snow banks, firing at each other with paintball guns.  
It was all going nicely, until Jack, who had only got a faint spattering of paint and flour from the cast off of other balloons, and a small patch of honey from where he hadn't had the heart to duck from Baby Tooth's brave attack, took a hit of green paint to the shoulder. He fired two shots back at Bunny, getting him covered in blue paint, but the damage was done.  
With a cry, Sandy led the others in a frontal assault, putting the others on the defensive.

Eventually, what with the surrenders and lack of ammunition, it came down to the five guardians... as well as two elves, but no one seemed to count those. North made a grab for the elves, and started chasing them about, leaving Sandy to shrug and target Bunnymund. Jack grinned widely as he and Tooth faced each other, and the squealing of her little fairies-not wanting Jack's outfit to get covered in pink paint-, plus the fact that she really was starting to get cold and didn't what Jack to have a pity fight with her, had her throwing her hands up.  
"I'm out!"  
Bunny and North stopped and stared at her, leaving them vulnerable to being tripped up by elves and blasted with a snowball, and she shrugged.  
"Sorry guys... He grinned at me..."  
They both sighed, shrugging as if to say '_fair point'_ before turning back.  
North easily caught the elves after that, and turned his attention to Jack, who was throwing a balloon of white paint in the air and catching it, idly.  
"You want a break, old man?"  
"Old maybe, but comes with experience, Jack."  
"Tell me that when you lose..."  
"Bring it over."  
"On. The saying is bring it on."  
"Reall-?Oof!"  
He landed in the snow, having been too distracted to dodge the snowball thrown by Sandy, and immediately rolled over to his feet again, only to be hit with a balloon, which exploded, showering him with white paint.  
That was never going to come out...  
"Right... It is all way on..."  
He got out a box like thing from his back, which folded out into a full sized, rapid fire bazooka that seemed to fire...  
"Cookie Dough?" Jack said to himself, grudgingly admiring the idea, then blinked at North's next words.  
"Meet... The Cookie Monster!"  
Jack gave a soft whistle, before dodging the huge wad of cookie dough that flew his way. He scooped up one of the candy floss blasters, and dodged another blast as he unscrewed it and grabbed the firing section of it.  
North gave an appreciative nod as the younger guardian dismantled the thing in his hands, and rotated part of it, folding it in to become something similar to his own blaster.  
The winter spirit really did think of everything...

Sandy and Bunny had likewise paused, and Sandy grinned as the empty candyfloss blaster turned into a very sophisticated looking missile launcher. Or rather, snowball launcher.  
Bunny was likewise impressed, and made a mental note to ask how the hell the little maelstrom made the thing, before he decided to use the lull to his advantage.  
Before he could throw at the golden guardian however, a snowball flew into his face, and he lost his balance, tripping and sliding down a snow bank.  
Jack grinned as he got a head shot, then yelped as he ducked and slid down a back himself, dodging another ball of cookie dough. The whole ball of mixture shattered and he blinked as some of it landed in his mouth. Hmm, the stuff was actually pretty tasty...  
He pushed himself up, then grinned. Bunny wasn't the only one who could tunnel.  
"Sandy! Switch targets!"  
He got an affirmative trumpet call, and grinned.  
Bunny on the other hand, was immediately worried. Jack must have something up his sleeve...

He leapt over the bank, into open space, and let his senses take over. Thing was, he couldn't hear him, see him or smell him.  
He wasn't on the ground, or in the air... Where the hell-  
It hit him just as the blast of snow did behind him, and he span to see the spirit blasting through the snow from beneath him.  
"Snow tunnels... Haven't used any in years..."  
He grinned, and the spectators, including Tooth started cheering, though Tooth acted all innocent, whistle and casual sauntering in the air and all, when North and Bunny glared at her.  
"Alright frost bite, it was impressive, I'll give ya that..."  
"Oh, I'm not done..."  
Bunny's ears twitched as he heard something beneath the ground. Jack went on, as if nothing was wrong.  
"Another thing you guys don't know about me is that I have a weird affinity with animals... Especially arctic ones."  
The ground was now shaking, and both North and Sandy were staring at Jack and Bunny, wondering just what was going on.  
"Anyway, yeah. The funny thing is, Arctic rabbits seem overly fond of me, and are happy to help me out now and then... So, with that in mind, say hello to my little friends!"  
With that, snow shot up all around bunny and several frost white, tiny rabbits bounded into the air.  
They were joined by several of Jack's own creations, before he grinned.  
"And now, the Return of the Cuteness!"  
Bunny's cry of surrender was cut out as he was buried beneath a mound of rabbits, and Jack grinned when he realised that Bunny was officially out. He decided to leave the rabbits there for good measure though...  
Then he flew over to join Sandy, who gave him a high five and a wide grin, before they both turned to face North.  
The huge guardian looked between them, then at Bunny, then back at them, and threw the cookie blaster to the ground.  
"Okay, you win!"  
A series of gold fireworks sparked everywhere, and Jack and Sandy high-fived again.  
"Told you we could do it, Sandman..."  
_Seems fun makes a good weapon..._  
Sandy signed, and Jack laughed.  
"Yep. Anyway, are you tired? I'm suddenly feeling tired..."  
Sure enough, he gave a yawn, before smiling at the sight of Bunny, managing to finally fight his way out or the writhing pile of fur.  
_

Jack grinned, flying down, and emptying a bag of carrots on the ground, which the rabbits all raced to.  
Funny, they actually liked carrots... They all licked him, snuggling in, before nipping a carrot and vanishing into the ground again.  
The ice rabbits vanished, and Bunny gave Jack a hand up.  
"I'm assuming this means a truce, eh Frostbite?"  
Jack laughed.  
"Yeah, I'm actually out of pranks... Gonna need some time to get some new ones... Oh, and I really need to restock all my stuff... I wonder if Shady still has the name of that place..."  
He continued mumbling to himself, and a light bulb appeared over Sandy's head, causing him to give the others a wave before flying away.  
Bunny rolled his eyes at North, both thinking the same thing.  
This was not going to be anything good... But, for now, they could take a break.  
Speaking of which, Tooth smiled as she came up.  
"Well, now that it's safe to fly the skies again, I have to get going... Congratulations Sweet Tooth! See you guys later."  
She flew of, her fairies flying behind her, and Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"I guess this means we're cleaning up then, eh?"  
North shook his head as he noticed how tired Jack was.  
"No, me and you will be cleaning with elves and Yeti's. Jack needs to sleep. He must have used lots of energy for making life difficult, da?"  
Jack gave an indignant scowl.  
"Hey, I'm fine."  
Too late. North grabbed him and dragged him off, protesting, and Bunny grinned.  
True, he'd be cleaning it up, but the scene of chaos was also the scene of the most fun he'd had in years. So he figured it was a decent exchange.  
"Come on then, let's get this cleared up before some human gets snapshots of it... We don't want another incident like when old pumpkin head got himself spotted..."  
At the memory of the Halloween spirit, The Headless Horseman, and the resulting legend, they started clearing things up, and it wasn't long before they were back in the pole, sorting through it all.  
North arrived just as they were carrying the last lot in, and rolled his eyes.  
"Boy is stubborn, da? Had to get Sandy to use Dream Sand. Used a lot of power for last few weeks."  
"Well, he is the guardian of fun, North. I reckon 'e thought it was about time we 'ad some."  
"Da. And it worked very well."  
"Ya got that right, mate. Now we just have to find a way to make it up to 'im."  
"Da, but is nearly Christmas. We make it up to him by giving him best Christmas he ever had. We didn't really do that last year..."  
"For once, I reckon ya may be right about Christmas... Sounds good."  
"And Tooth will agree also I think. And Sandy. Will be Christmas to remember."  
"Considering it'll be his first proper one..." Bunny muttered, determined to think of something that would be the perfect gift. It was only a few months away after all...  
"Then," North said with a grin, "We get vengeance for pranks da?"  
"Rather you that ne mate... You insane?"  
"Da, but he never see it coming."  
"... Let me get back to you."  
_

Jack woke up, the following morning, to a note from Sandy.  
He blinked as he read it, then looked at the foot of his bed where, sure enough, there was a stack of stuff. And by stuff, he meant replacements for everything he had used over the last few weeks, as well as dozens of other things. It was everything a prankster could want.  
Jack grinned.  
He'd give them a break for now... But the ideas rolling around in his head demanded to be released, and he flew to the wall, scrawling on it with ice. Notes and plans for countless pranks.  
Then he memorised the wall, blinking and erasing it as he heard footsteps.  
He quickly pulled on his Hoody, faking a yawn as he sat back on the bad, before pretending to be just getting up as North knocked and entered.  
"Ah, Jack, You are awake. Good, we have problem..." He stopped for a dramatic pause, before finishing. "Need to know if brownies need more sugar."

He looked so serious when he said it, that Jack couldn't help laughing and followed him out.  
Pranking may be fun, and his plan to get every single one of the guardians enjoying themselves seemed to have worked perfectly, but it felt good to get back to normal.  
Speaking of normal...  
"Hey Phil!"  
The yeti span at the sound of his voice, and lost his balance, before he fell into the new pyramid of neatly stacked balls.  
Jack laughed as he few away from the yowling, irritated Yeti, and followed North into the kitchen, where the elves were back to cooking normally, much to North's relief.  
Yep, it was definitely good to have things back to normal for a while...  
And...  
"Hey North, these are great. Even remembered the chocolate chips this time!"

* * *

**The exploding Tooth idea came from SnowFlower Frost, and the Oreo and Sticky note ideas from Lliri... Cheers guys :D  
Anyway, about all the movie references and quotes and such during this prank crusade...? What can I say. I just couldn't resist...**

**Next, well, Jack promised Romeo and Juliet to the fairies, and now they're getting him to pay up...  
Then we're gonna have a Christmas celebration, Jack will possibly meet April Fool, Pitch returns with more orbs, we may see a bit more of Shady... Hmm, maybe the Headless Horseman's story, Guardian Style? Bunny vs Jack somehow? That could be amusing... Ooh, what if Jack could cook?  
To be honest, I have so many ideas rolling around, that I have no idea what order to write them in... Ah well, Hope you enjoy them whatever they are!**

**Raven xx**


	9. Jack of the Opera?

**Im giving Jack a little depth in this chapter, by giving him something I can kinda picturing him having...  
I****t's a bit different to my other ones, with a focus on a different side of Jack, and h****opefully they all remain in character... You'll have to let me know what you think though :D :D  
Thanks to Sakuradancer3, JennaGreenleaf, Taranadongirl1, tropicalmoth, cho wuz here, hanazaki462anime and rchlanne for the most recent faves and follows!**  
**As usual, Hugs to Everyone!  
Oh, and this is set a week or so after the end of the Prank War...  
**

* * *

Jack sighed as he recalled his promise with the Fairies, but knew he wasn't going to try and get out of it. A deal was a deal after all. What they didn't know was that he was going to go all out with this, and give them a show to remember.  
So, armed with a copy of Romeo and Juliet, he head up to the room he had told them to meet him in. A room with a piano, which he was also planning on using. Baby Tooth had told him they were all perfectly happy to let him do things his way, and he grinned as he realised that the reason he humoured them like this was because he considered each of them to be tiny little, fawning... well, was sisters the word when they kept stalking him?  
Ah well, he shoved the door open and nearly rolled his eyes as he realised that every surface was covered with the small fairies, or the ones that could take time away that is...  
It was a good thing that the others guardians were busy... He wouldn't hear the end of it if they heard him...  
He sighed, and sat himself down on the piano stool, grinning.  
"Okay then, let's see what we can do..."  
He scanned the book till he got to the scene he knew they all wanted, and let one of his older accents take over, which had most of the fairies swooning before he could even begin. He rolled his eyes, letting them recover before starting.

"But soft, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. Arise fair sun, and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief that thou art more fair than she. But not her maid, since she is envious..."  
He continued to the end of that passage, then, at the word cheek, grinned as the entire room swooned.  
Then he blinked. Hmm, why not go all out Shakespeare? Instead of continuing with Romeo and Juliet, he scanned the back of the book for a sonnet, and grinned when he found a very familiar one.  
"Shall I compare thee to a Summer's day? Thou are more lovely and more temperate. Rough winds to shake the darling buds of May, and..."  
He read the sonnet, ignoring the fact that it was about summer, and sighed as he finished, closing the book. Honestly. Even Baby Tooth, normally more immune to him, was swooning a little herself, both at the accent and the words and the meaning and just in general, but managed to pull herself together as Jack whispered in her ear.  
She thought for a second, and then flew around the room, getting votes in.  
She came back saying that it was a direct tie, which was kind of impossible, considering there were three options and and 197 fairies in the room, but Baby Tooth had those eyes that she very rarely used, and he simply rolled his eyes before spinning to the piano, flexing his fingers.  
So, first things first. Hmm, which song to do... He grinned, deciding on the order, and started playing the intro notes to Windmills of your mind.

Unknown to him, all of the other guardians, aside from Bunny, were outside the door, having been smiling about the whole thing, and all were astounded when Jack not only played the Piano perfectly, and with a magical quality that they could only dream of, but also when he started singing, his voice carrying lilting tones and an almost magical array of sounds, that gave the song a beautiful, yet haunting quality.  
Tooth, much like her fairies who were inside the room, was teary at the beauty of it, and was not alone in wondering just how the winter spirit had learnt to play the piano, or how he had such a wonderful voice. It seemed to carry the very embodiment of the song... carrying so much emotion and depth...  
Sandy had gone into a dream state himself, and North realised he was recording it in his mind, possibly for use in dreams, and he couldn't blame him...  
The boy was just... Wow...

The next song was a piano solo, but held just as much beauty as the previous song. None of them recognised it.  
As Jack's fingers flew over the keys, he failed to notice as Tooth and Sandy crept into the room, crouching down at the back, as North stayed outside, fearful of distracting the young guardian.  
Tooth was entranced by the beauty of the music, and way Jack's fingers danced over the piano keys, and she was told by Baby Tooth that it was Jack's own composition. So, he not only played music, he wrote it? The music seemed to capture the very spirit of winter, and Tooth was clueless as to how he could do it... Sandy had to yank her down to avoid being spotted by Jack, as he span, a grin on his face which faded to concern as he saw the devotion on the fairies faces.  
"Hey, you alright guys?" His voice held a lilting accent they had never heard before, and Baby Tooth chirped, telling him to get a move on with the next one.  
He rolled his eyes, and turned back to the Piano, flexing his fingers in preparation for the final song, before realising he wasn't sure what he wanted to play. The choice had been for the other two, and then a random song, but he had no idea what to play.  
Then he stopped as the wind whispered to him. Huh... Spinning, he caught the tell tale sight of Tooth's feathers, and found that, instead of being annoyed, he was grinning.  
"Hey Tooth, Sandy... You still out there North?"  
The three of them looked embarrassed at being caught out, and North rubbed his neck.  
"Err... Sorry Jack..."  
"It's fine... Actually, I need a hand. I promised them three songs, and I can't think of another one..."  
He winked at Baby Tooth, knowing she wanted a particular song though she wouldn't tell him what it was, who chirped and whispered into Tooth's ear.  
Tooth grinned, and nodded.  
"Hey, What about Can you feel the Love tonight? Ya know, from that guy... Bolton or something?"  
"Like the proper version?"  
She nodded, and Jack raised an eyebrow at Baby Tooth.  
"All this time, you wanted me to sing... Disney?"  
She chirped, and he rolled his eyes.  
"Alright then... Hang on..."  
He mimed a few notes before grinning,  
"Okay, I got it..."  
He started playing the intro melody, and started to let the music flow before singing.

A few minutes later, the final note drifted away into silence, and Jack, now feeling a little self conscious, gestured randomly.  
"So... What do you think?"  
Aside from the small fairies that were staring at him in a dreamy state, everyone started complimenting him with half formed compliments that could never truly explain how amazing it was, and eventually, North's voice boomed out.  
"Right! Is time to get back to work now. I am sure Jack has things to do also?"  
The guardian nodded, grateful, and the room emptied, leaving Jack alone with the other guardians.  
Tooth gave him a smile that said more than words ever could, before she flew out after her fairies, and North simply patted him on the back, telling him that the room and everything in it-the piano, guitars, and all of the other instruments- was his whenever he wanted to use it.  
Jack finally settled down, and Sandy started signing. It took a few seconds before Jack realised what the guardian wanted, and he raised an eyebrow.  
"You want me to play music for dreams?"  
Sandy nodded, eagerly, and Jack blinked, shocked.  
"Oh... Well... I-er... I could, I guess..."  
_Only if you want to.  
_"I'd be honoured... Truly, I would. But don't you make dreams out of desires?"  
_Yes and no. Sometimes I twist in memories of stars... adds magic to a dream. Your music would as well...Could you write to match space?  
_"Write music to fit with the idea of space? As in stars, eternity, things like that?"  
_Calm, yet hopeful... Yes...  
_"I'll give it a shot..."  
Sandy gave him a hug, and they both flew out the window, before splitting off to do their own tasks.  
_

A few hours later, Jack was back at the pole, and it wasn't long before the entire place was filled with music. It stopped, changed, got blended and turned into something different and new each time the music sounded, but eventually began to morph into something beautiful. And if North had to sum it up in one word, it would be hope. Baby Tooth, having had a hunch Jack would head back, was recording the entire thing. From the first simple notes, through to the music that told of hope, onto the final piece. North had long since given up creating things, and was sat listening as it morphed from Hope into something more. Now hope, but also happiness, inspiration, freedom, fun... It was a bright future summed up in music.  
Moon did that kid have talent...  
Eventually, the music quietened down, and North returned to work, a smile across his face.

Sandy flew through the window just as Jack gave a hmm, that clearly translated as '_Should I make it... more? Or is it enough...?'_, then blinked as he saw the guardian.  
"Oh, hey... I've tried to do that song you wanted..."  
He didn't even have to sign to let Jack know he wanted him to play it, and the younger guardian flexed his fingers, taking a deep breath.  
"Okay..."  
Sandy was shocked... well, speechless didn't seem to fit- as he listened to what was being played.  
And Jack had done it in only a matter of hours...?  
He was drinking it all in, stowing it away into dreams, knowing that they would be some of the best he had ever created with the help of the music, and he also watched as Jack seemed to let the music flow through him.  
It was incredible...  
The final note faded away, and Sandy floated there, staring at Jack, before making a gold explosion of clapping, horns, fireworks and roses, which had Jack jumping back and falling out of his seat, before laughing and floating back to his feet.  
"You like it?"  
Sandy tapped his head, signing quickly, and Jack blinked.  
"You've put it into dreams already...?"  
Sandy nodded, grinning widely, before heading out, and gesturing for Jack to follow him.  
_Being a genius must make you hungry...?  
_Jack laughed, as he followed him down, not noticing Baby Tooth flying away with the recorder...

It appeared that there was a fan club amongst the Yeti's as well, who were all known for their love of music, though their leader refused to let his identity be known. Jack stowed it away in his mind, determined to find out who it was, before heading through to find North pretty much dancing around the study, pieces of paper floating everywhere and pinned to every surface, plans for new toys covering them.  
"Ah, Jack! Your music is inspiring! Helped me create all of these designs... I am not sure how you do it, Jack, but keep doing it, da?"  
Jack laughed as he grabbed a cookie, and flew up to the rafters, only glad Bunny wasn't here for all of this. A couple of hours later, and the same thought had apparently crossed North's mind, causing him to stop leaping about.  
"Sandy! We must fetch Bunny! He loves music..."  
Jack choked on a mouthful of cookie, falling from the beam and landing with a crash on the floor, only avoiding a few bruises because Sandy had slowed him down.  
"Tell Bunny? I'd never hear the end of it!"  
"Relax Jack. Bunny is big enjoyer of music."  
"B-But... But..."  
Sandy gave Jack a nod, and he rolled his eyes.  
"So I'm being ganged up on by the older generation... Great..."  
North gave an indignant huff at that, and Sandy grinned, signing.  
_Not your best insult...  
Shut up...  
I'm not talking.  
Then... _"Damn it, why can I never stop sighing? It's ridiculous!"  
Sandy nodded, and eventually, at the huge grin, Jack gave in and smiled too.  
"Yeah, right. Whatever... But North!" he whined, but was cut short as Bunny burst into the room, grinning like a maniac.  
"Okay, so it's a normal day till Baby Tooth shows up, and I get to see this!"  
Jack's face fell at the sight of the tape recorder, and he saw the tell tale sign of wings fluttering behind Bunny.  
"Traitor..." he muttered, and Bunny grinned.  
"I heard that frostbite, and I'm bettin' she did too... So anyway, I figured I'd head over and ask just how the hell ya can be such a great musician without us knowin about it?"  
Jack blinked.  
"... What?"  
"The music. Jeez Frostbite, ya got some serious talent."  
"Indeed he has." North said, and grinned, "But you have heard nothing yet Bunny."  
Jack blinked again, then grinned.  
"Neither have you, North. There was a reason behind the legend of The Phantom of the Opera... I've been playing music for a long time you know."  
With that, he strolled out, leaving the other three blinking, before Bunny turned on the other two.  
"Care t' explain?"  
North shrugged.  
"Well, it all started with Shakespeare, and Romeo and Juliet..."

* * *

**Hmmm... Should I have a fic where the identity of the Leader of the Yeti Fanclub revealed? Do any of you have any idea who it is?**  
**Oh, and any more ideas for the later chapters? I NEED INSPIRATION GUYS! :D :D  
And sorry it wasn't the best one yet, but hope it was enjoyable anyway...?**

**Anyway, Next couple of fics:  
Gonna be having a nice Guardian christmas, gifts and all...  
Pitch will return, and will again be planning on ruining Easter, this time with a new weapon to aid him... (Possibly going to be another two or three part fic, but will not be long between updates if it is :D )  
Maybe a fic with the kids from Burgess? (What do you guys think? I don't want it to be all cliche...)**

**Either way, please review and let me know what you think of this chapter and possible future ones!**

**Raven xx**


	10. A Guardians Christmas

**Okay, this is a few weeks later and, in response to requests, its gonna be a family christmas!**  
**Hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

It had been a quiet few weeks, on the run up to Christmas. Bunny and Jack had set aside their usual bickering to give North a hand, and it had all run perfectly. There had even been less of a rush than normal, as Jack had created various ice slides to carry presents and toys to various places instead of the elves having to traipse back and forth.  
Now, North had finally returned from his trip and was settled down with a glass of eggnog, laughing as Jack and Sandy had a silent argument, about whether gold or pale blue was the better colour, in sign language, Jack seeming too caught up to bother returning to speech.  
Bunny entered the room, an there was a short lull as they both waved and greeted him, before the argument returned full strength.  
"They still arguin' 'bout the best colour?"  
"Da. Is amusing, No?"  
"Very. Trip went okay?"  
"Same as every year. Now it is just Tooth to arrive-"  
Right on cue, she flew through the window, rolling her eyes at the silent argument.  
"Oh dear... Look, we all know blue is a better colour Sandy..."  
Jack grinned, then North shook his head.  
"Ah, but Gold is very good colour. Might be better than blue. Is very christmasy and festive, da?"  
Jack glared as Sandy gave a victory dance, and they turned to Bunny.  
He rolled his eyes.  
"They're both decent colours... But I'm afraid I'm with the Frost bite on this one."  
Everyone, including Jack, stared at him, incredulous, and Jack started signing, before blinking and snapping out of it into speech.  
"Wait, you're agreeing with me...?"  
"Yeah. I prefer blue to gold..."  
Sandy threw his arms up, as if to say who can argue with that, and floated up onto his cloud.  
Jack sank into the sofa, legs up and taking up the whole length of it, before shuffling so that Tooth could sit down.  
_

He jumped when Sandy appeared in front of him, holding a small golden ball on a chain, sand swirling inside it, and gestured for him to take it, a huge sign, lit up with glowing lights, saying Happy Christmas.  
Jack blinked, catching the ball as it fell, and looking at it as Sandy gave the other guardians one too.  
Sandy started signing, and Jack translated for the others, all of whom had gotten used to this much easier way of talking to him.  
"He says... They will protect against nightmares when you're sleeping... And hold a dream he's been working on for... Wow, nearly six months? Oh, and he says Happy Christmas."  
The others laughed, as Sandy shrugged, and Jack had a closer look at the orb.  
He hadn't been expecting a Christmas present...  
Resolving to look at the contents later, he mimicked the others in placing it around his neck, all aside from Bunny, who tied it to his ever present Boomerang holder, and gave Sandy a huge grin, signing.  
_Thanks Sandy... It's amazing...  
Id hope so, I spent long enough working on it...  
_Jack laughed, shaking his head at the confused expressions on the other guardians faces.  
"Nothing. It's just funny that you can sign emotions..."  
They all looked at him as if he was mad, until Sandy started signing again, and Jack grinned, signing back.  
_Actually, I have something first. Do you mind giving it to them later?  
Sure, no problem. What did you get?  
_Before Jack could react, however, and tell him that he would have to wait and see, North was in front of him, holding out a wrapped box.

Jack blinked, taking it, and realised that Bunny and Sandy were also opening identically wrapped boxes.  
"Is present from both Tooth and me." North said, smiling, before sitting back down again and grinning at the difficulty the others were having in opening them.  
Jack, however, tugged at the exact point he knew would undo the ribbon, something that Bunny and Sandy were both clueless to, and opened the box, giving a soft wow as he took out what was inside.  
It was a snow globe, but not any snow globe.  
Inside, images flashed. Jack's eyes widened as they realised that they were scenes from his memories. Some of his best memories were playing out in front of him, and he laughed as a particularly good one came up.  
Tooth and North shared a grin, having been hoping that Jack would be okay with the invasion of privacy, before Jack pulled Tooth into a tight hug, which set North of laughing... That is, until he was nearly choked by the same thing, leaving Sandy and Bunny, who had finally opened theirs to find a similar thing, laughing at the both of them.

Jack joined in the laughter as he sat back down again, only to blink and catch another box as Bunny called 'Think fast!'  
He rolled his eyes as Bunny groaned, having been attempting to catch him out that way all year, and grinned.  
"Nice try, Fluff-bug."  
Fluff-bug was a particularly new one, and Bunny was still at the stage where he was rolling his eyes at it. He was actually wondering how Jack came up with them all, and was unaware that Jack had actually come up with list of names, memorised them and was picking them out at random when needed.  
"Go on then, Frosty, open up." He said, handing the others different shaped gifts, and hopped over as Jack pulled out a small egg charm, made of a green crystal type material and glowing faintly with streaks of gold, held in a gold setting.  
"It's a key... Kinda." Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"Well, ya spend so much time in the warren, ya may as well have proper access to it. Means ya can open a tunnel there any time ya like. But I'll know though, so no pranks-"  
He was cut off by the hug that Jack gave him, and grinned.  
He had figured that the best present he could give was something that proved his trust in the younger guardian, and he looked like he had been right. He also knew that Jack would avoid abusing that trust, meaning he would have less pranks played on him... And it gave him somewhere to go if he was ever in trouble and needed a quick way out.  
Jack seemed to realise all of this, and gave Bunny a huge smile, full of gratitude.  
"Thanks..." It was all he really could say, and all he needed to.  
The others, understanding the reasons behind Bunny's gift, all grinned, then thanked him in turn for the individually decorated, miniature eggs that expressed their jobs. Bunny grinned. It had been a nightmare to get the right shade of gold for Sandy's eggs...  
Ah well, it was worth it.  
_

Then it was the other's turn to be surprised as Jack flew off, and returned with a small box for each of them.  
Jack had thought quite hard about what gifts to get, and had decided on something that he hadn't tried in years... Namely, creating a snowflake, then trapping it in ice, then breathing on the ice in such a way that it would never melt. Sure, it was hard, but he had hoped it would be worth it.  
Apparently, it had been.  
He grinned as they all opened their gifts to find individual snowflakes trapped in ice which was so clear and smooth, it could have been glass.  
Tooth's was as big as her hand, and held the image of her, flying around her palace. The detail, and the frosted pattern that swirled away from the centre of the snowflake, where the picture was, had her breathless.  
North's was designed in the same way, but had a different image in the centre.  
A picture of the sleigh, him driving it, with each of the reindeer, and a couple of elves swinging off the back. He chuckled at the elves, then marvelled at the detail and precision that had gone into such a tiny image.  
Bunny was likewise shocked by the detail and artistry, as he looked at the picture... namely him being buried by several rabbits, which he recognised as being from their prank war a few months ago, with a few eggs dancing around.  
"Hey Frostbite? Feel like taking over the egg painting this year? I could use a break."  
Jack laughed.  
"You kiddin? I've been offering to give you a hand for ages..."  
"Yeah, but I didn't know you were bloody Van Gogh did I? Mate, these are great."  
He grinned, shrugging, then blinked as Sandy sent an arrow his way to get his attention and starting signing.  
Jack blinked, then shrugged, voicing his reply.  
"These are some of the ones you're always sending out... You're most regular ones..."  
Sandy had opened his to find a picture of him, on his cloud, and several streams of sand, each morphing into something else as they twirled up into the different edges of the snowflake... Dolphins, Fish, Birds, Stars, Planets, Smaller Animals... Several of the dreams he was regularly sending out. And they were all done to perfection...  
He tried to get Jack's attention, and eventually had to shoot an arrow, before signing.  
_Where are these from? When did you see them?_  
Sandy blinked at the reply. How did he know that? He decided to ask later, and simply gave him a huge smile.  
_It's beautiful. Thank you.  
_Jack shrugged self consciously, then grinned.  
_I'd hope so, I spent long enough working on it...  
_Sandy laughed, and Jack yelped as he was bowled backwards by Tooth, who had pulled him into a hug.  
"Aww, thanks Sweet Tooth, it's beautiful..."

Then the other's blinked as several fairies flew in, proudly displaying miniature snowflakes on chains around their necks.  
They were tiny versions of what Jack had given them, but were hung on small chains, and each held the image of a fairy, flying with a stream of glitter behind her, with a small tooth cupped in her hands. They were as detailed as the larger ones, and Tooth gasped as she heard that Jack had made one for each of the smaller fairies, leaving them for them at the palace earlier that day. The amount of time and effort he must have put in...  
"You made one for all of them?"  
Bunny, Sandy and North looked likewise startled as Jack shrugged.  
"Well... Yeah..."  
"But it must have taken you-"  
"It's fine, Tooth, honest..." He gave her a huge grin, and she sighed, smiling as she pecked him on the forehead.  
"That's so sweet, Jack..."  
He grinned, then yelped as he was bombarded by fairies, all of whom wanted to give him a hug.  
Tooth laughed, with the others, then smiled at Baby Tooth, blinking as she proudly displayed her own present. It was identical to the others, but for the small inscription on the bottom.  
To My Little Tinkerbell.  
She gave a squeal at the cuteness of it all, and joined the others in burying Jack with hugs.  
Despite all of his pleas for rescue, the other guardians just laughed, deciding to stay well clear of the whole thing lest they be dragged in too, but eventually, Sandy decided to lend a hand and created a sand barrier between Jack and the fairies, nudging them away slightly, and finally getting them to abandon their hugs and fly off.  
Tooth returned to her seat at the same time as Jack, who glared at the others.  
"Cheers for the help..." Then he raised an eyebrow at Sandy, who had a question mark above his head.  
"Sure. You wanna get them?"  
Sandy nodded, then flew away, as the others turned to Jack.  
"Get what?" North asked, but Jack just grinned.  
"Wait and see..."  
They didn't have to wait long.  
_

A few minutes later, Sandy flew back in, three wrapped packages in his hands.  
He didn't have to say who they were from, as they opened the paper to reveal thick books, with their names, and 'From the Punk Pranksters' written on the front. That was the nickname that the others had given Jack and Sandy, inspired by the punk hairstyle on their flag, and they all gave each other 'oh no' looks.  
They hadn't... Had they?  
How could they have found the time to take photos without them knowing about it?  
They hurriedly opened the books, and burst out laughing as they realised each page was filled with photos of the prank crusade a few months ago, with small inscriptions telling them what it had been, most likely from Sandy, who would want them to remember every detail of their humiliation, and with small jokes and phrases written at the bottom of the pictures, obviously courtesy of Jack.  
Looking through the pictures took up the rest of the night, and eventually, Jack nodded off, Tooth not long after.  
Sandy grinned as the other two dozed off as well, and watched as the dreams in the orbs he had given them began working. They would play not just tonight, but whenever he thought they needed a dream that was better than his usual best. And tonight, that was his gift.  
He flew out, to do his job, and grinned as watched a dolphin leap around a telegraph wire. He looked at the snowflake Jack had given him, and realised it was identical.  
This had him smiling for hours afterwards...

North smiled as he started dozing, and he glanced across at Jack. The youngest guardian had seemed overwhelmed by the gifts, and North was determined to make every Christmas count. He wasn't sure why they had so rarely spent Christmas together before, but he was going to make it a tradition. Now... What could he make for presents the next year...?

* * *

**Okay, next is going to be the Easter trouble with Pitch, so it's gonna be set a couple of months after this chapter :D**  
**After that... well, wait and see :D But I do thinks it's time we met some different spirits, or learnt more about Jack's past, so keep an eye out!**  
**Please review and let me know what you thought of the gifts!**

**Raven xx**


	11. Saving Easter Again Part 1

**Just gonna jump right in here... Just a reminder that this is set a couple of months after the last chapter, and it is nearly Easter :D  
Oh, and angsty-ness and drama in this one... Just to let you know.**

* * *

Jack groaned as he pulled himself to his feet, only to collapse to the floor again.  
Damn Pitch... Jack had spotted him, and noticed one of the orbs, that they had tried to destroy several months ago, in his hand. Then badabing, badaboom, he beats a load of nightmares, Pitch flies off cackling like the insane evil monster he is, and Jack get's shoved into a building by the last of three nightmares and gets tossed around before he finally beat the damned things.  
Jack sighed as he focused on his injuries. Not too serious... The cuts and bruises would heal, as would the concussion. But man, did he have a headache. He was just about to fly to the Pole, when he fell over, dizzy, and realised he was far too dizzy and in pain to fly just yet. Then he blinked, and face palmed himself, remembering the egg charm Bunny had given him, which was now hanging beside the dream orb from Sandy, on a chain around his neck. He used his staff to prop himself up, and took a deep breath, concentrating, before tapping one of his feet. A hole opened up, and Jack sighed.  
This was gonna hurt...

Bunny's ears pricked up as he was alerted that someone had entered the burrow. With more focus, he realised that it had been Jack... He got a bad feeling in his gut, and swiftly got to his feet, forgetting the fact that Easter was less than three weeks away, and ran to find him.  
He cursed as he caught sight of him, covered in blood, again, and trying to get to his feet.  
He blinked as Bunny got closer, and gave him a faltering grin.  
"H-Hey... Sorry for... for distracting you so...so close to... Easter..."  
His voice was coming in pained gasps.  
"Forget about that. Damn it Frostbite, what happened?"  
"Oh, Just... a run in with Pitch... Usual stuff... Have to warn you... he has- he has more of those... orbs... Couldn't fly to the pole... too dizzy..."  
He groaned, pressing his hands against his head, trying to fight the instinct that was telling him to fall unconscious.  
Bunny scooped him up, blinking when he almost threw up on him, and shaking his head.  
"Come on, mate. Let's get ya to the pole..."  
He opened a tunnel, and jumped through, arriving just outside Santoff Claussen. He lay Jack down in the snow, relieved to hear a grateful sigh, and waited to make sure he was okay on his own before leaving him to get rid of his concussion and heading to find North.  
_

He found him in the workroom about twenty minutes later, and North gave him a surprised look.  
"Bunny! It is nearly Easter. There is problem?"  
"Yeah. Jack just got himself into a fight with Pitch, and turned up at the burrow looking like he had been thrown into a brick wall... Which he probably had, knowing him."  
"What? Where is-"  
"He's fine. Just outside in the snow. Had a hell of a concussion..."  
"Why did he get in fight? And go to Warren?"  
"He was too dizzy to fly here. And he wanted to warn someone that Pitch had more of those orbs...I thought we destroyed them but apparently not."  
"Damned it... Okay, I will make sure Jack is okay. You had better head back to-"  
"Nah mate, I'm stayin' till I know he's okay."  
"If you're talking about me, I'm fine."  
This came from Jack, as he flew in, looking better than he had been when Bunny left him.  
"Jack! You are okay? Bunny tell me you fight with Pitch...?"  
"Yeah. Just the usual. He sets nightmares on you, then legs it. Just got thrown into a few walls, but nothing too serious... Did he tell you that Pitch had more of-"  
"More of the orbs, yeah. I told 'im, Frostbite. You okay?"  
"Yeah. Cuts and bruises will fade in a couple of hours. Headache's gone... Sorry for distracting you so near to Easter... I figured I'd better let someone know. Didn't think I'd drag you away from your eggs..."  
"Hey, I'm doing fine. Right on schedule. I can spare an hour or two here and there. I'd better head back though... You sure you're-"  
"I'm fine, Jeez, I've had a lot worse than a wall before..."  
"... Do I wanna ask?"  
"Well, it involves a landslide, an avalanche and a deep ravine... oh, and the Grand Canyon. So no, you probably don't."  
"...Okay then. I'll see you later guys. Let me know what you decide to do about Pitch..."  
North nodded.  
"Will do."  
Bunny tapped a tunnel, and vanished, leaving Jack to slump into a chair.

North offered him a plate of cookies, to which he gave a look that said 'I'll be sick if I do...' and shook his head.  
"No thanks... So, what are we going to do about Pitch?"  
North sat in the opposite chair, and sighed.  
"We must find out how many orbs he has. Then we can see about doing something..."  
"But until then, he's even more dangerous. If he was to hit us with one of those orbs... It's like concentrated fear from what I could feel when I went near one."  
"Then we must warn others. I will contact Tooth, and you find Sandy, yes?"  
Jack nodded, getting to his feet, but North shook his head.  
"No, you must rest for hour or two. Till you heal fully."  
Jack rolled his eyes, getting to his feet.  
"I'm fine. Just a few cuts and bruises. I've _fought _with worse than that."  
North sighed. It was at times like this when he regretted the promise he made with the other guardians that they would listen to Jack in response to what he was capable of doing.  
The deal was simple. Jack was honest about what he could do, and how he was feeling and they would act accordingly. He'd kept his side of the bargain up till now...  
"Okay. But any problem, and you return."  
Jack laughed,  
"Sure thing, Dad..."  
He flew out, and North, despite the light sarcasm on the word Dad, felt himself smiling as he sent a message to Tooth with one of the fairies that was on shift as messenger.  
He did very much act like that towards their youngest guardian... He often thought that way as well.  
_

Jack sighed as he flew towards the part of the world that was just fading to night.  
It was the fastest way to find Sandy...  
Sure enough, he came across him about an hour later, and the other guardian grinned, waving cheerfully.  
Jack grinned too, then sighed.  
"Hey, Bad news. Pitch has more of those orbs we tried to destroy. Not sure how many, but he definitely has at least two that I could see."  
_How do you know?_  
Sandy said, worrying about how the younger guardian could have found out, and Jack sighed again.  
"Had a run in with him a few hours ago. The usual 'send nightmares to attack whilst he legs it' thing."  
_Are you okay?  
_"Yeah, only a few cuts and bruises. Had a hell of a headache though... Anyway, I saw two of those orbs... Flew right near one as well. It was like they were pure fear..."  
Jack shuddered at the memory.  
"And I'd hate to think what he wants them for..."  
_Me too... Did you want to stay till I am done? Then we can both go to the pole. It is dangerous if Pitch uses them as weapons.  
_Jack grinned, both eager and slightly grateful that he would have some company on the fly back. He wasn't sure why, but something about those orbs had set him on edge.  
"Yeah, I'd appreciate that. Thanks Sandy..."  
The other guardian grinned, then gestured to the golden dolphins that were leaping around Jack when he touched one of the streams of dream sand, before pointing to the dolphin symbol on the snowflake crystal Jack had given him for Christmas.  
Jack grinned.  
"You've been doing that one for years Sandy..."  
He nodded, smiling.  
Jack was determined that this was not going to be the last time he watched Sandy send out dreams.  
It was incredible to watch dozens of small streams of sand flying in all directions, morphing to various creatures and objects as they read a child's thoughts.  
After about an hour, Sandy signed that he had sent enough to last a few hours ahead, and they both flew towards the pole.

Tooth was already there when they arrived, and immediately flew to Jack in a state of worry, motherly instincts in overdrive as she checked him over.  
Jack rolled his eyes at North, over her shoulder, who shrugged and gestured as if to say 'well, what can you do...?'  
Jack sighed, and shrugged in agreement, finally being allowed to sit down after reassuring Tooth that he was perfectly fine.  
The problem was, they had no idea how many of the things Pitch had, or what he was planning on doing with them. And until they found that out, they could only attempt to keep an eye on Pitch's activities.  
Which was why, a few hours later, North was on patrol in his sleigh, over Europe, Tooth had taken Asia, and Sandy was taking America as he started spreading Dreams again.  
Jack had head down to tell Bunny, who told him to call for him if there was any trouble, and had then taken the areas that the other guardians weren't covering. They each had fairies with them, who would fly to the others as soon as Pitch was spotted, and the idea was to keep constant track of his activities, in turns and shifts. As soon as they found him, that was.  
It was several hours before a fairy appeared, still, like all of them, wearing the tiny necklaces Jack had made for them, and chirped that North had spotted Pitch.  
Jack head there straight away, knowing that North's sleigh was not the most subtle means of transport, and arrived at the same time as Tooth and Sandy.  
Pitch, however had vanished again, and they had no idea where to. Then Jack blinked.  
"What if this whole thing was a ruse? Getting us to try and find him, then leaving everywhere else vulnerable..."  
The others froze as they took that in, then North cursed.  
"Jack is right. Pitch could have planned whole thing. But where could he attack?"  
"Could be anywhere..." Tooth said, and North nodded.  
"Okay, I say Tooth, head back to palace. I head to Pole. That way, we have both places covered."  
They all agreed, and Sandy and Jack split up to try and position themselves to be ready for anything. Jack flew for a few minutes, then stopped, another thought hitting him just as the small egg on the necklace started glowing a vibrant green.  
With Easter so close...  
The Warren!  
_

Jack immediately flew to the ground, and urgently opened a tunnel. The warren seemed eager for him to get there, and he jumped out just in time to see Bunny and Pitch vanish into a patch of shadows, nightmares along with them.  
There was a scene of devastation, with dozens of shattered eggs around the clearing, and Jack cursed, opening another tunnel, this time willing the warren to send him near the pole.  
He arrived just as North did, and quickly related what had happened, before vanishing, with the promise to return in an hour to meet with the rest of the guardians, back to the warren.  
It seemed, that in the state it was, it didn't hesitate in taking Jack where he wanted to go, and he arrived back in the place to see a load of eggs trailing from various hiding places.  
He smiled faintly. At least most had survived.  
He channeled his frustration into working, and threw himself into painting the eggs. Egg after egg was painted, quickly but neatly, with patterns of flowers, ribbons and other eastery things, until Jack realised that he had better head back to the pole. He set down his last egg.  
"Okay, you go hide with your friends. Bunny will be back soon, promise..."  
The eggs all ran off to their various hiding places, and Jack opened a tunnel again, arriving back at the pole.  
The others were already there, and they quickly decided that they needed to find where Pitch was holding Bunny.

The plan was simple. Go to his hide away, break in, find Bunny, break back out again and save Easter.  
Just another average day in the life of the guardians then... Jack thought, grinning ruefully.  
A few years ago, he would have been lounging about round about now, considering the best place for an Easter snowstorm... Now he was _saving _Easter.  
It was weird how quickly times changed...  
As a quick afterthought, before they left, Jack quickly threw on his belt, and slotted in the Sai...  
His gut telling him that he would need a weapon was something he fully intended to listen to.  
None of the other guardians made a comment on the addition to his outfit, and they all head out to the entrance to Pitch's home. Well, the only one they knew of.  
Little did they know that it wasn't only Bunny they would be rescuing...

* * *

**Duuun Duuuun Duuuuuuuunnnnn!  
Sorry for the cliffie, but this will only be a two part, don't worry :D Its back to the one shots after they save Easter... Because we all know they will :D  
So, next...Big fight, evil plans, and a side of Jack that I have wanted to show for a while now :D  
Please review and let me know what you think!**

**Raven xx**


	12. Saving Easter Again, Part 2

**... Okay, I don't really like how the first part of this- with the fight and all- turned out. Not sure why, but I just don't think it's all that... That.  
(I don't understand me either...)  
But the later half... I actually quite like it.**

**Oh, and thanks to darlene10104, for not only a fave and follow, but also a review that had me peeking out from behind my curtains, thanks to mandamichelle, Amazing-Thalia-Grace (for following and faving the story, and also adding me to her fave authors list!) and to MatchPoint0-1!  
You're all awesome, and welcome to the ride! (Not sure whether I've thanked titanprincess123 and faliara yet, so there it is anyway :D )  
Enjoy!**

* * *

Bunny scowled at Pitch, still tugging at the net, made of nightmare sand, that was holding him against the wall.  
"This ain't gonna work mate. The others ain't gonna let ya ruin Easter this year-"  
"Oh but they won't have a choice..." Pitch's laughed, and though Bunny would never admit it, it chilled him. "You see, Bunnymund, you may have destroyed most of my newest creations, but I need only a few to spread more fear across this planet than ever before. I don't even need to be at full strength. With the pure, undiluted fear stored in these orbs, even the belief of those irritating little pests from Burgess will not be able to stop me... And neither will the guardians."  
"I wouldn't be so sure, Pitchy-"  
"Oh really? Maybe you will have changed your tone when you have felt the power I have at my disposal!"  
With that, the nightmare king pulled out one of the orbs, smiling in a way that told Bunny this was not going to be pleasant, and pulled a trickle of black sand from the orb.  
"All it needs is one touch, and it will cast you into a pit of nightmares and despair so deep that you won't be able to tell day from night or reality from non-reality... And it won't release its hold on you until its full core has been completely depleted... So you see, even the guardian of hope cannot hope to be able to carry through with Easter when he will be in a perpetual state of fear for many days to come... Still want your friends to try and rescue you?"  
"Ya won't get away with this, Pitch..."  
"Oh, but I already have..."  
Then he gestured to a cage that appeared, and Bunnymund cursed as he realised who was inside it.  
"Jamie!?"  
"Bunny! I was up in the woods, then this creep appeared. Next thing I know, I'm locked in this damned cage..."  
"Don't worry mate, the others are-"  
"On their way..." Pitch said, mockingly, "Indeed they are... But they will be able to do nothing!"  
A sudden blast of black blocked everything from Bunny's sight, and he eventually blinked and opened his eyes to a scene of utter devastation. One that had haunted his nightmares for centuries...  
Pitch laughed as the Pooka twisted and pulled at the net, his fear and horror seeping into the air and tasting almost as sweet as the nightmares of the Winter Spirit... Then again, the fear of guardians always did, and as soon as the other guardians arrived, it would be a veritable feast...  
Even the fear from the child was nourishing, and he smiled, only to be met with a defiant stare.  
He was about to rectify that when one of the nightmares appeared, and warned him of the guardians approach.  
"And so it begins..." he said, a gleam in his eyes, and called to his nightmares. "Come... Let's give them a proper welcome party..."  
_

The sleigh landed in the clearing and North leapt down from the seat at the same time as the others did. Jack stared with loathing at the small hole in the ground, beneath the splintered bed frame, and felt Tooth's hand on his shoulder.  
"You okay Sweet Tooth? You haven't been here since-"  
"I'm fine. Bunny's the one we should be worried about... But this is too easy."  
North nodded.  
"I agree... Should be guards and nightmares at entrance. Must be trap..."  
"We don't have a choice."  
"Most assuredly, Jack. Very well, then let us go..."  
Jack grinned at Baby Tooth, who had insisted on coming with them, before diving into the hole in the ground. Baby Tooth chirped and followed him down, shortly followed by Tooth.  
North blinked as he took in the size of the hole, and coughed for Sandy's attention.  
"Erm, we have slight problem."  
Sandy looked from the hole to North, or, more specifically, his huge belly and face-palmed, before gesturing him forward. North grumbled as he stepped up to the edge, then blinked as the hole widened.  
"Ah. Problem solved."  
He jumped down, followed by Sandy, and landed with a thump on the ground a few moments later.  
He got to his feet, dusting himself off, to see Jack already moving, Tooth right behind him.  
He hurried to catch up, Sandy right behind him, before they heard a voice that had them frozen in place.  
"JACK!"  
Jack froze, and North grabbed him before he could make a run towards the voice. Jamie's voice.  
"Jack, is trap! Must stay together-"  
"No! I need to help Ja-"  
"We will, but cannot help him by being caught! Must be careful!"  
Jack struggled for a few more seconds before he sagged slightly, and North took his hand away.  
"Then what are we waiting for..."  
Jamie's voice rang out again as they got closer,  
"Jack! It's a tr-!"  
It took everything he had, plus North and Tooth to stop him from running towards him right then. As it was, it was only a minute more before they reached the balcony above the cavern.

North cursed as he took in the scene. Bunny seemed to be in the grip of a nightmare, struggling against the black sand chaining him to the wall, and Jamie was lashing out at Pitch, who was holding him by the scruff of his jumper.  
"Right. Sandy, Tooth! Get Bunny! I will help Jack and get Jam-"  
"JACK!"  
The fear in the boy's voice had Jack over the balcony before the others could stop him, and North immediately jumped over after him, Tooth and Sandy doing the same before heading to Bunny.  
Jack dodged a few nightmares and hovered in front of Pitch, expression furious and dangerous.  
"Let him go Pitch..."  
"Or what Jack?"  
The young guardians eyes turned Glacier cold, and Pitch smiled.  
"And now we again see what anger can do to your powers Jack... Very well."  
He let go of Jamie, who plummeted towards the floor, only to have Jack catch him a minute second before he hit and check he was alright before handing him to North.  
"Get him out of here... I'll hold off Pitch..."  
The older guardian nodded and, ignoring the boys desperate attempts to break free and run after Jack, opened a portal to the sleigh.  
"Listen Jamie. You must leave. Jack will be safer if he knows you are safe."  
"But I-"  
"Want to help. I know, but is not place for you now. Must go!"  
The boy glared, but nodded, and North threw him onto the seat of the sleigh, waiting till the portal had closed before turning back to Jack.  
The younger guardian blasted Pitch back, and flew down to him.  
"Help the others... Pitch did something to Bunny."  
North nodded, for once accepting Jack could handle himself for now, and ran towards the others, slicing at nightmares as he went.  
_

Sandy was pouring golden sand into the net, and was finally rewarded by it breaking from the wall and disappearing. But no matter how much he tried, he could not break the hold of the orb that was pouring nightmares into the Pooka.  
He was relieved when North finally arrived, and gestured to Bunny, before creating a small sand show of North taking him back to the Pole.  
The big man nodded,  
"Da, but must help Jack-"  
He was cut off as said guardian plowed into the ground next to him, yelling out as he sent up a hail of mud and rock.

Jack shakily pushed himself to his feet, ignoring the pain, and cursed as he realised his staff was thirty feet away. He felt a hand on his shoulders, and span, before he realised it was North, who was giving him a concerned look.  
"Are you okay?"  
"For now. Need to get my staff th-"  
"I'll get it."  
Tooth flew off before Jack could say anything, and was immediately targeted by a group of nightmares. He started running, pulling out his Sai, and called over his shoulder.  
"Get Bunny back to the Pole! I'll get Tooth!"  
Sandy gave North a thumbs up, and eventually, after they had fought off the next wave off, agreed to take Bunny back to the sleigh.  
He threw an orb, jumping through whilst hefting the weight of the Pooka on one side, and cursed as a dozen nightmares followed him through.  
Just before the portal closed, he shouted he could deal with them, and Sandy head towards the other two as he figured that his old friend was more than capable of dealing with a few black horses.

Jack had cut a path through the nightmares to Tooth, who was likewise busy, lashing out at the nightmares with her wings. She smiled as Jack reached her, and held out his staff.  
He sheathed the swords and grinned as he took it back, sighing in relief at the faint tingle he felt as it reconnected to his skin.  
That felt much better.  
Together, the three of them managed to beat back the surrounding nightmares only to have Pitch laugh at them.  
"You think you have won? I have already accomplished what I set out to do... I'm afraid that the guardian of hope will be in the grip of those nightmares for weeks to come... Might make Easter a little difficult, don't you think? All of those eggs left to paint... to hide... How could you hope to be up to such a challenge? I had hoped to have you as a bonus, but no matter... My work here is done."  
With that, he vanished in a swirl of sand.  
The three guardians shared looks, before hastily flying towards the exit.  
Yeah, it had all been a trap, but not for them... For Bunnymund.  
_

Back at the Pole, Bunny was still thrashing feverishly, and Sandy was busy trying to find a way to still the influx of nightmares as the other guardians discussed what to do.  
Jamie had been dropped off at home, by Jack, who had arrived back an hour after them, telling them he had spent quite some time with the young boy, and Jack now had a few bandages around his arms and chest from where he had been thrown into the ground. Tooth was likewise sporting injuries, but North's coat had protected him.  
They were now discussing what to do about the eggs.  
"But we cannot paint eggs... Not without Bunny. They will be too skittish to-"  
Jack shook his head.  
"No, they are fine around me. I can paint them... But we'll still need to get Bunnymund back to normal before Easter, otherwise we'll have no chance of hiding them."  
Tooth nodded.  
"Okay... We'll keep thinking of ways. You head off and get those eggs done Jack."  
He nodded, and decided to take a shortcut, tapping his staff and opening a tunnel to the warren, nodding goodbye to the others before jumping through, the Warren seeming to welcome him with open arms...  
North sighed as the tunnel closed.  
"He is good guardian. Man in Moon should have chosen him sooner."  
"Yeah, but he's here now, and that's the important thing. Now we just need to think of a way to help Bunny."

They jumped as golden arrows appeared in front of them, and they turned to where Sandy was trying to get their attention.  
Tooth hurriedly translated what he was trying to say.  
"The dream... amulet from Christmas, yeah... You managed to... It's fighting the nightmares...? That's great! Wait... still won't be able to... drain the fear orb for... almost a month! Sandy, it's Easter in less than three weeks!"  
North aha'd, taking his own charm from around his neck.  
"If we give him ours, will it speed up process? They are not dreams for him, no, but still happy..."  
Sandy thought for a second, then nodded, smiling widely.  
Tooth spoke again, as she tried to figure what he was saying.  
"Should... Will work... Will be able to wake him in about two weeks... That's still cutting it close..."  
Sandy shook his head.  
"It... will be in time. Okay, shall we go get Jack and-?"  
Sandy shook his head ferociously, and Tooth gave him a confused look.  
"Wait... No? Just me and North? But he will want to- Okay... Wait, he needs it? Pitch keeps focusing nightmares on him?"  
Sandy nodded and Tooth gasped.  
"He never told us..."  
Sandy shrugged, with a sad sigh, and North rested a hand on her shoulder.  
"Will deal with this later. Must help Bunny now."  
"Yeah..."  
Tooth pulled off her chain and handed it to Sandy, who began to connect hers' and Norths' to Bunny's.  
They both sat back with a sigh.  
This day had just been one thing after another...  
_

Jack popped up in the burrow, and was immediately swamped by anxious eggs.  
"Hey! Hey, calm down. Listen..." They quietened down, and Jack spoke calmly. "Bunny is going to be okay. But he won't be here for a while, so you need to let me get the painting finished... Will you let me do that?"  
One of the eggs chattered and rubbed against his leg, causing him to smile lightly.  
"Good... Then let's get a move on."  
He quickly got the different paints and paintbrushes and got to work.  
He lost track of how long he had been painting for, as egg after egg got covered in flowers, chicks, ribbons, patterns, spots and stripes under his quick, yet nimble and delicate fingers and artistic eye. Though the eggs couldn't tell him so, it was work that Bunny would have been proud of.  
He kept track under his breath of how many he had done, and it had reached 372 before Tooth arrived.  
"Jack! Sorry we took so long... We have found a way to wake Bunny. It'll be a close call, but he will be okay by Easter. How is it going?"  
"At last count, 372 eggs painted... Nope, make that 373..." he added, as another one scampered away and a new one eagerly jumped into his hands. "If I can keep this pace up, I'll have them done with a couple of days to spare, meaning I can take the odd hour off to do my own work... Unless you need me at the-"  
"No, no, we're fine. This is important. Here, let me help for a while..." she tried to catch the eggs, but they scampered away, wary of her touch.  
Jack shrugged.  
"It's okay Tooth, they're nervous without Bunny. I'll be fine."  
"You're sure?"  
"Yeah."  
"Okay. But go straight to the Pole if you need anything, and don't forget the snow..."  
"Okay. Keep me updated on Bunny?"  
"Sure Sweet Tooth. I left Baby Tooth at the Pole, and she'll fly down every couple of days, or if something changes."  
"Thanks Tooth..."  
His attention was drawn back to the eggs, and she watched as a loving, gently intense look took over his eyes.  
"No, Thank _you _Jack..." she whispered, before giving him a quick hug and flying away.  
_

The time passed quickly for Jack. Eggs, Snow, messages from Baby Tooth, eggs, more eggs, more snow, yawning as he got over his newly acquired sleeping pattern and relaxed into his old 'sleep when desperately needed' routine, and yet more eggs.  
Hours passed to days, and it all swamped into a blur for Jack.  
He didn't sleep, he only had odd bites of food when the eggs dragged him small biscuits and carrots from the warren, and only had the odd drink, when Baby Tooth appeared carrying small bottles of water or when Jamie gave him a passing glass or sandwich whenever he made it snow in Burgess, which was only twice over the entire two and a half weeks.  
He found it easy to return to this steady functioning pace, but knew that if he let himself stop, he would sleep for hours until his body recovered. So he kept going.

Unbeknownst to him, the two times Bunny had broken from his nightmares and woken, Sandy had been reassuring him about Easter by showing him memories of when he would absently hover over Jack, making sure he was okay. He was astounded by the dedication that the youngest guardian was showing, and could sense overwhelming gratitude and pride, but also worry and concern as Bunny realised that Jack had been doing his own work, plus Bunny's, without sleep for days... None-the-less, as much as they both hated to admit it, Jack could keep going for as long as he needed and, although he would need a lot of rest when it was over, he was more than capable of handling it.  
The Pooka had also seemed surprised, no, more like downright astounded, when he had found out that, unlike they always had with the other guardians and various spirits he had known over the years, the eggs were treating the Jack the same as they did Bunny. Or pretty damned close to it... He could even sense that the warren had fully accepted Jack...  
But this would all fade as the nightmares took him again, not as bad as they had been at the beginning, but still some of the worst he had ever had... Memories of fire and blood and death... Of having no-one believe in him... of guilt and hopelessness and danger and then back to the fire... A circle of pain and fear that only ended o the odd times he managed to break free for a few moments, and be reassured that everything was fine...  
It took a long time, but eventually the last of the sand trickled away and Bunny gasped, leaping upright, only to end up dragging two yetis over with him as he landed on the floor.  
He groaned as he got up, his muscles trying to get over the shock of moving again, and North hurried in.  
"Bunny! You are finally awake! Is good-"  
"Yeah... Damned stuff finally left my head alone."  
"Good... Pitch has failed again in-"  
"Wait, what's the date!?"  
"Relax. Is still two days till Easter-"  
"Two days! That's no time! I have to-"  
"Bunny!"  
The Pooka froze at the volume, and North gestured for him to sit. He did so.  
"Good, now listen. Eggs are all but done, and Jack is finishing off last ones. They are as good as you could do yourself. He has not stopped since we got back from Pitch. Is in state we do not want to break him of. Has done his own job, has sent nightmares from Warren twice, has barely eaten or drank anything. Has not had sleep... But he has got eggs nearly all finished. We do not distract out of respect for his want to help. I have not seen such dedication or display of friendship in long time..."  
Bunny blinked.  
"Ya mean the little blighta did it?"  
"Da... But Sandy says you must rest for another hour at least to let mind rest before you go. Will all be fine. Will be at warren by Noon."  
Bunny, surprising even himself, didn't argue, and slumped down.  
If he could escape all the hassle with just another hour, then he'd do it. Then he was going to go and find the little Frostbite and do something to make everything up to him... Somehow.  
He had no idea how, or what it would be, but he'd sure as hell find something...

Two hours later, Jack-having been completely astonished when Bunny arrived and pulled him into a hug, swept aside the thankyou's and gratitude and handed Bunny the last egg, which he had kept back.  
"Does this mean I'm forgiven for the blizzard of 68?"  
Bunny laughed.  
"Mate, you're forgiven for every prank and disaster you've caused for me since the day we first met. Except for the prank crusade. I still intend to get payback for you turning this place into a winter wonderland."  
Jack grinned, and finally allowed himself to yawn.  
"Looking forward to it..."  
He blinked as he realised that he was more tired than he had first thought, and sank to the floor, sighing.  
"Good luck with... hiding the... eggs..." he said, and before Bunny could say anything, he was asleep.  
Bunny gave a sad smile as several of the eggs snuggled up to the winter spirit before scampering away, and he swiftly painted the last one.  
He was touched by the gesture, and the fact that Jack had thought of it. It really meant a lot, and it was a shame he wouldn't be there to help share them out... Heck, he'd probably be sleeping for the rest of the week, if not two...  
A quick tunnel to the Pole, and he was laying Jack in his own room.  
The younger guardian didn't so much as stir, and Bunny sighed, ruffling his hair.  
"Thanks Frostbite. I owe ya one mate..."  
He quietly left the room and told North Jack was there, before heading back to the warren to arrange the final preparations.  
He grinned as he saw the various patterns that adorned hundreds of the eggs, and shook his head.  
Damn, the kid had talent...  
Looks like Bunny had found him a spring job from now on...

* * *

**Yeah, Sorry if the characters seemed OOC... They seemed that way to me sometimes in this chapter...  
I know I could have gone into more detail of when Bunny got back to the warren, but I didn't want it to drag into a whole other chapter, so hope this will do?**

**Oh, EMERGENCY! I am in the planning/start-of-writing stage of, as per a lot of requests, a fic where Jack meets April Fool. I won't give spoilers, but when those two team up for revenge... But that's the problem.  
****I NEED PRANK IDEAS!  
****I'm all exhausted after the prank crusade, and need a lot of them... Pretty please...?  
*sweet innocent look of sheer awesomeness worthy of Jack himself...*  
Even the smallest thing... ?  
****Speaking of which, I NEED GENERAL IDEAS! Even a one word prompt will do! Actually, I'd really like to try a couple of those...  
Please review and let me know what you think and to give me any prompts or ideas or pranks or requests or whatnot!?**  


**Okay, Now Im done :D**

**Till next Time, Raven xx**


	13. Family Resemblance

**Yeah, I know I haven't explained how Jack can understand the fairies, and if someone really wants me to, I'll attempt to come up with a reason why he can, but if not, just go with the flow and embrace the magic?!  
And for Jack's little sisters name, two faves amongst us fans are Pippa (due to the voice actors) and Jamie (because of the resemblance) But I'm going to go for Ja**_**n**_**ie, because I think it's cute and yeah...  
**

**So, this is a little different, as some of it will be from Baby Tooth's point of view, which I am hoping to be able to get right... And what she says will be in italics, as I will have... _Translated_ it all for you *grins bright, disarming smile*  
Anyway, angst, sadness, memories, friendship and crying fairies await you... So dive in!  
Set a couple of weeks after the Easter Fic :D**

**Oh, and hugs to everyone, as usual :D**

* * *

Baby Tooth was chattering away to herself as she sorted through the teeth. Molar here, another one there... oh, a first tooth! She coo'ed over it for a moment, before gently placing it into a container.  
She was still flitting around when Jack flew in, having been there to see Tooth and wanting to say hi before he left, and squealed in delight as she caught sight of him.  
"_Jack!"_  
He laughed as she snuggled into his neck, and held out a hand for her to land on.  
"Hey BT, how's it going?"  
"_Good... Same as normal. Where have you been?"  
"_Sorry, I've had a hell of a time trying to control the avalanches with the recent ice and tremors... And had to go to Burgess. Ah well, they've cleared up now, so I'll be seeing you more often._" _He gave her a bright smile, and she sighed at the whiteness of his teeth...  
"_Good... What is it?"_  
Jack blinked, having been staring at something on her face, and she brought her hand to the birthmark there.  
"Sorry, I was just... nothing. Sorry BT, I'm gonna have to get going. If I stay here any longer, I'll end up melting." He grinned again, his usual twinkle back in his eyes, and she gave him another hug.  
_"Okay... Come see me again soon?"_  
"Course I will. What's Peter Pan without Tinkerbell?"  
She thought for a moment.  
_"... Hopeless as any other male?"  
_"Hey!" He exclaimed, the undercurrent of laughter taking any sting away from his words, "I'll have you know I'm perfectly mature, responsible and-"  
_"Modest?"_She finished, not managing to keep serious, and he crossed his arms, raising one of his eyebrows._  
_"Oh, now that's unnecessary..."  
They bantered for a small while, until Jack got himself playfully shoved towards the door, and grinned.  
"Okay, I'm going. Take care of yourself BT!"  
With that, he was gone and she sighed, smiling.  
"_Now... where was that first Tooth?"_

She had just slotted the small box into its own snug home, when Tooth came flying in, smiling.  
"Hey Sweetie, Guess what!? Jack found some pictures and drawings of his family, and showed me... Here, look!"  
She held out the printouts, that Jamie had found as a surprise for Jack, slowly flipping through them, and Baby Tooth smiled as she saw the human Jack, laughing with his sister...  
Then she blinked, stopping Tooth from going to the next one by slamming her tiny hand down, and looked closer at the young girl... More specifically, at the birthmark on her face.  
Tooth must have noticed too, and blinked.  
"Oh... Look at that! You have the same- Baby Tooth! What's the matter sweetie?"  
Baby Tooth just mumbled something about having somewhere to be and quickly flew out. But not before Tooth heard a small sniffle.  
She looked back down at the pictures again, and gasped as something clicked.  
Oh... Baby Tooth didn't think Jack was using her as a replacement for his sister? She couldn't think that... Right?  
But why else would she fly off like that?  
Tooth carefully wrapped the photos up again and flew from the room, quickly placing the pictures on the small desk she had and flying towards the pole. She needed to ask Jack to speak with Baby Tooth, and it was the first place anyone would look for him.

Luckily for her, she managed to catch him before half an hour was up, and he smiled at her, concern evident.  
"Tooth? Is everything okay?"  
"Jack... Baby Tooth was looking at the pictures you showed me, and she saw a picture of your sister and-"  
"Oh..." He understood immediately. "She saw the birthmark didn't she...?"  
"Yeah... I think she thinks you're using her as a replacement for your sister..."  
"B-But I'm not... Why would she think... That's not what-"  
"I know Sweet Tooth, I know you wouldn't do that, but she doesn't... Can you go speak with her?"  
"Of course! Is she still at the palace?"  
"She was last time I checked..."  
"Okay then. The snow can wait..."  
They both flew back to the palace, and Tooth asked around for Baby Tooth, only to find she had gone on a tooth gathering trip, alone, which was both dangerous and against the rules, seeing as they were meant to go in pairs...  
Jack, not wanting to waste time, decided to follow her usual route, and Tooth promised to keep Baby Tooth at the palace if she returned before he got back.  
Jack flew out, following Baby Tooth's normal route, and hoped he could catch her before either she got into trouble or he hit the warmer parts of Asia... He wasn't feeling too good as it was.  
_

Baby Tooth was hardly concentrating on the Teeth, mindlessly completing the tasks she had done countless times before, and she sniffled.  
It had been the birthmark Jack was looking at earlier... So was he just using her to replace his sister? Using her to keep something from his past? He must be. She was so stupid.  
Why would Jack Frost, of all people, want to be friends with a stupid little fairy like her? The whole idea was ridiculous... He only wanted to be friends with her so he could remember his sister...  
Baby Tooth wiped her eyes, where tiny tears were starting to pool in her eyes.  
Why was she crying? She'd always wondered why Jack was so nice to her. Why he took the time to help her and talk to her and joke with her... She sniffled again as she took the small snowflake necklace from around neck, holding it in her tiny palms.  
She bet even that was just something stupid... stupid birthmark... stupid fairy...  
Baby Tooth sniffled again, tucking it back away as she continued towards the even hotter part of Brazil, unaware of the winter spirit that was trying to catch up with her.

Jack was cursing as he tore off his hoody, tying it around his waist. Even topless, it was really hot, and he was flying higher to keep cooler. He just hoped he could find Baby Tooth before she got somewhere ridiculously hot, like Brazil...  
It was almost another half hour before he caught sight of a tell tale line of sparkles, and sighed in relief, thankful that it was night and not the middle of the day. If it had been, he probably wouldn't have even got this far...  
"Baby Tooth! BT, can I talk to you for a minute?"  
His voice carried, and he knew she had heard it, but she only slowed down a little.  
He flew lower, and yelped as the steep descent took him out of the cool and through what seemed to be a wall of heat. It took a while for him to adjust his breathing, but he eventually managed it and looked up to see Baby Tooth flying towards him.

Baby Tooth blinked at Jacks voice, and choked back a sob.  
He was only here because Tooth told him to come... Why else would he be here? None-the-less, she slowed down. Then she belatedly realised that it was far too hot here, for Jack anyway, and turned to see him stumble in the air as the heat struck him properly.  
She immediately flew towards him, and sighed in relief as he got his breathing steady, before blinking, remembering why he was here.  
_"What do you want? It was silly to come here... It's too hot-"  
_"Well, I needed to find you... Not my fault you're so fast..." He tried to grin, but it stumbled. "Can we go a bit higher?"  
She floated upwards, and Jack sighed as he faced her, now slightly more comfortable.  
"What's wrong BT? Tooth said you were upset?"  
There... Of course Tooth sent him...  
_"Nothing..."  
_"Is it the birthmark? Because I- Baby Tooth! Wait a minute! Tell me you don't think I'm trying to use you to replace me sister?"  
He looked pained, hurt when he said it, and Baby Tooth sniffled again.  
_"You mean you aren't?"  
_"What? No! No, of course not!"  
_"But... But you were looking at the mark earlier, and why would you be friends with me anyway? I'm only a stupid fairy and-"_  
"What? No you aren't? Where's all this come from? I was looking at the mark because... look, I had just seen those pictures and it made me a little... I was just thinking back to what I can remember... The last time I saw her and... I didn't mean to hurt you Baby Tooth, I just miss them a little sometimes, and I was upset."  
"_Oh..."_ Now Baby Tooth felt more guilty than anything, and the tears finally pooled over. She had gone flying off like some newbie fairy, feeling all sorry for herself, and had dragged Jack nearly to the equator because she was paranoid at the fact that he missed his family?  
She felt a cold hand beneath her and fluttered into it, looking up to see Jack looking both startled and worried.  
"Hey, shh... It's okay. You're okay. I'm sorry BT, I never meant to make you upset."  
A finger beneath her chin had her looking up to see a familiar twinkle, but an uncharacteristic seriousness in the guardians eyes. "Listen, for a minute?"  
She gave a trembling nod.  
"Right, I'm not using you to replace my sister, okay? I never have nor am I ever going to use you like that. I didn't even pay that much attention to the mark before today... I hang around with you because I care about you. Because you are the most cheerful, fun loving, carefree little sprite I know, and because you're my friend... Actually, I like to think of you as family. I look at you and see you. You, BT, not my sister... I might miss her, but you're my family now. Yes, I think of you as my little sister, but not as a replacement for Janie... Not as Jackson Overland Frost's little sister, but as Jack Frost's sister... Do you understand?"  
She nodded, stunned by how much he had opened up to her, and how much he actually cared, and she smiled.  
_"I understand..."_  
"And do you believe me?"  
She smiled, wiping the last of the tears away, and saw nothing but truth and love in his eyes.  
_"Yes... I'm sorry-"  
_"For what? It was my fault... But let's just forget about all of it, eh?"  
She nodded, jumping into the air and snuggling into his neck.  
"_Yeah..."  
_"Okay then... Now, how about we get you home, eh li'l sis?"  
"_Okay. And maybe before you melt?"  
_He laughed.  
"Sounds good to me, Tinkerbell. Let's get back..."

By the time they arrived at the Palace, Jack had gone way past the headache stage, and knew he needed to get to some snow, but he wanted to get Baby Tooth back first.  
The little fairy had become increasingly worried about the winter spirit, and flew ahead as they reached the palace to get Tooth.  
Tooth gasped as she saw the state of him, but Jack gave her a smile, face starting to flush an unhealthy pink.  
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I just wanted to-to make Baby Tooth got back okay... I'll head off... now..."  
He gave them a weak smile, and Tooth immediately flitted to his side.  
"Come on Sweet Tooth, we've got to get you somewhere cold..."  
It wasn't long, with the help of both a very worried wind and a very worried Toothiana, before Jack was able to sink into the snow of a mountain range.  
"Thanks... I'll be fine now Tooth."  
"You're sure Jack?  
"Yeah... And you've got to head back to the palace..."  
She nodded, realising that Jack would be fine, and hugged him, before turning away, only to turn back as he spoke her name.  
"Tooth?"  
He was sat up now, and the flush had gone from his face, leaving only a faint purple tinge.  
"Yeah?"  
"Please don't say anything to Baby Tooth... She was really upset about the whole thing and-"  
"Of course I won't, Jack. I'll need to speak with her about going off alone but-"  
"Okay..."  
"And I want you to go to the pole and spend the night. No arguments, Jack, I just want to know you'll be okay."  
He gave her an eye-roll, but grinned.  
"Okay... I'll come down in a couple of days...?"  
"Okay Sweet Tooth, I'll see you then."  
She gave him another quick hug and took off, leaving Jack to lay in the snow for another half hour before letting the wind carry him to Santoff Claussen.  
Maybe it would be a good idea to stay there for the night... He hadn't annoyed Phil in some time yet, after all.

Tooth arrived back, to find a very worried Baby Tooth.  
"Jack's okay. And he asked me not to ask about what happened. But that doesn't mean I can't speak to you about the rest of it." Tooth sighed. "Flying off alone was irresponsible Baby Tooth. Not to mention dangerous. What if something had happened to you? And what about Jack? He could have been badly hurt if he stayed in that heat any longer... I'm not going to ask how close to the equator you got, because I'm not sure I want to know." She sighed again, as Baby Tooth apologised, and shook her head. "Just think things through a little more in future, okay BT?" The nickname had kinda stuck after Jack started using it, and the smaller fairy nodded.  
"Good. Then let's get back to work. I heard you had a first tooth earlier?"  
Baby Tooth flitted away and Tooth followed her, smiling.  
Time for everything to get back to normal.  
_

Later that night, Baby Tooth yawned as she fluttered down to her bed.  
Just before she dozed off, she looked at the small snowflake crystal Jack had given her and smiled, as she kept it clutched in her tiny hand, eyes closing of their own accord.  
She'd always wondered what it felt like to have an older brother.  
Now she knew...

* * *

**So, love it? Hate it? Want more from the lesser explored characters, like maybe Phil's POV or something? Or one of the elves? (That may be... both interesting and a challenge...) Not my best chapter, but I'm hoping the next one-which may in fact be my fave so far- will make up for it :D  
Whatever it is, please review and let me know!**

**Oh, and the plea for Pranks for the April Fool chapter is still there! Please?!  
*huge puppy eyes...Then resorts to Jedi mind tricks* You will awaken the part of your mind that likes to be evil... you will... ahem, right. *realises that probably isn't the best way to get you guys to help,and smiles disarmingly*  
What? You all love adorable puppies...?  
*rolls eyes and resorts to Puppy eyes again.***

**Till next time then guys, Raven xx**

**Oh, and I'll do you guys a deal. If I can get ten pranks to use, I'll upload a third fic today :D Or maybe two or three tomorrow, depending :D  
See? You've even got me resorting to underhand deals and bargaining *dramatic sigh then sly grin* I approve :D**


	14. Jack Can Cook?

**Yup, another of Jack's secrets/abilities revealed! (One of my faves so far I think... Maybe...)  
Oh, and Thanks to ProwlHawthorne (both for faving the story, and adding me to your favourite authors list),Destiny-FaithAngel, illusionary science and Compliment Giver, (who followed and faved,), and Darky Jacky and Sheeijan who have faved since the last chapter was uploaded :D**

***hugs to everyone***  
**Enjoy :D**

* * *

North sniffed the air and blinked.  
"What in Earth..." he said to himself, sniffing again, and, almost unconsciously, got to his feet and started following the almost visible trail of the scent. One of the most appetizing scents, if not _the_ most appetizing scent he had ever encountered.  
It led him to the kitchen, where he had to blink. Once... Twice, then a third time as Jak turned around, first in surprise, then with a grin on his face, a tray of freshly baked... Well, it looked like a whole tray of chocolatey goodness.  
"Hey North. I hope you don't mind... I got a little bored and decided to try out my cooking skills. They're a little rusty."  
"No problem at all Jack... If I may ask, what are you cooking?"  
"Oh, these? They're my own little invention. Half cookie, half brownie. Basically, gooey, brownie flavoured cookies with chunks of brownie. Not the best batch I've ever made but... Hey, wanna try one?"  
North grinned, having been more focused on the smell coming from them, and blinked.  
"Hmm? Oh, yes. Why not."  
A single bite later, and the guardian of wonder thought he had never tasted anything so wonderful.  
"Jack, they are delicious!"  
"Really?"  
"Most definitely! Hey, do you know how to make normal cookies? And cakes? And-"  
Jack cut him off with a laugh, as he lay the, now half empty tray thanks to the elves that had swiftly stolen the small treats before running off, down on the side.  
"Hey, I actually learnt something's that were useful over the last 300 years you know. Not only how to play music, and how to sign and stuff, but I can cook too. Anything from cakes and biscuits to full course meals. And anything from the last century to the most recent kinds of dishes. I never really got much of a chance to practice myself, but I spent a lot of time just watching... "  
He trailed off a bit, a sad look in his eyes that the guardians had come to realise signified he was thinking about the many years he spent alone, and North was about to say something when Jack blinked, coming back to himself, and smiled.  
"So yes. I can definitely make cakes and other flavours of cookie."  
He blinked as he realised that the tray was now empty, an elf making off with the last of the brownie cookies, and sighed.  
"Ah well. I can make more. You want some?"  
North nodded, scowling after the small elf that dared steal the cookies, and grinned.  
"You know, I think even Tooth would not be able to resist these."  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"She might if she knew the amount of sugar that went into them..."  
"I beg to difference Jack."  
"Hmm? Oh. Well we'll see. She's coming over today isn't she? To help you design some of the outfits for the new dolls?"  
"Ah yes! We shall corner her then!"  
He laughed, eagerly, as he made his way out and Jack grinned as he pulled the ingredients towards him again, taking his Hoody back off and feeling thankful for the coolness that the t-shirt offered.  
The kitchen really was hot at times...  
It wasn't long before he had more batches in the oven, and several trays of various flavoured cookie dough and brownie bites ready to bake.  
Let's see the elves steal all of those...

Luckily enough they didn't, and Jack threw a few of each cookie and brownie onto a tray before flying to North's study, knocking on the door and heading in.  
North appeared from behind a full sized model of a toy castle, and grinned.  
"You have been cooking this whole time?"  
"What? I like experimenting. For example, there are now several different flavours of cookie and brownie on this plate."  
Jack gestured to each as he named them.  
"Normal cookies, Peanut Cookies, peanut and chocolate chip. The brownie ones, Oreo chunk ones, chilli and chocolate ones-I know, sounds so wrong, but tastes so right- Then mint chocolate chip, cinnamon, cinnamon _and_ chocolate and chestnut and _chestnut_ and chocolate and caramel... And there are hazelnut brownies, mint chocolate chip brownies, chocolate orange brownies, cinnamon brownies-I'm not too sure about those, but why not?- and caramel brownies. I'm not sure what kinds you like but-Oh, hey Tooth!"  
Tooth had just flown in at the window, and had apparently heard all he'd said.  
"Oh Jack," she exclaimed, "There must be so much sugar in those!"  
"Well... Yeah, but I was just experimenting and I-"  
"_You_ cooked them?"  
North gave a booming laugh.  
"He did at that, Tooth. And they are the best I have tasted in a long time. And that was just one kind of cookie... There are so many more..."  
He gave Jack a wink, and the younger guardian grinned, before turning to Tooth and giving her the widest, sweetest smile he could, with wide puppy eyes to match.  
"Do you wanna try some...?"  
Tooth was defenseless against his charms, and gave a sigh.  
"Okay then... But just the one!"  
That one turned into two... then three... then five... then seven... And the number kept climbing.  
Eventually, the tray had been emptied, with a little help from a few enthusiastic elves, and Tooth gave a distraught look.  
"Oh, I'm going to have to floss forever to get rid of that sugar... But they were great Jack! Do you think you could do some sugar free ones...?"  
Jack shrugged, grinning.  
"I'll give it a go. Oh, hey Bunny!"

Bunnymund blinked as he took in the empty tray, the very happy North and the guilty looking Tooth and grinned.  
"Okay, who let Tooth at the cookies?"  
North and Tooth hastened to rave about Jack's cooking abilities, and Bunny made a slight shooing motion with his hand, telling Jack to escape.  
The winter spirit gave him a grateful smile and slipped out, heading to annoy Phil  
But when he found Phil, he found he didn't have the heart.  
The yeti looked tired, irritable and growled as a stack of rubber bouncy balls tumbled over his head again.  
"Hey Phil... You okay?"  
Instantly suspicious, the yeti span, eyeing Jack warily, but at the evident concern, he blinked and moaned in Yeti speak. Which Jack was really not good at.  
None-the-less, he got the general gist and sighed.  
"Why don't you ask for a day off?"  
More yeti speak and Jack frowned.  
"Already... too many having a break? But I'm sure North would- Oh... you want everyone to have the rest of the day off to just calm down?"  
Growl... snort... whine.  
"Oh. And North is not gonna let it happen." Jack sighed, before blinking and grinning.  
"Hang on, I may just be able to give you a hand here. Make up for all the pranks I've played..."  
Whine... growl.  
"Yep, I'll see if I can get him to agree... I'm sure he'll listen if I use my... persuasive techniques."  
Growl.  
"No, I don't mean the innocent and adorable look. He's almost immune to it, and I don't want to use it on full power until the occasion is desperately called for. No, I have a better idea."  
_

An hour later, he flew through the door to the study and lay another tray on the table.  
Then he fixed North with a mischievous smile.  
"The Yeti's want a day's holiday."  
North blinked.  
"But is too busy to allow-"  
"I thought you'd say that-"  
Bunny snorted.  
"Mate, give it up. It ain't happening..."  
Jack sighed, shaking his head at the Pooka.  
"Oh, ye of little faith... Watch and learn. As I was saying, North, I have something to trade. Beneath this cover is a cookie. But not just any cookie. It is the result of hours of experimentation, of testing, of working... It is what I consider to be my masterpiece. My secret recipe weapon of a masterpiece if you will."  
North was intrigued, they could all see it, and Bunny and Tooth sat back to see whether the man who was all but immune to Jack's persuasive charms would give in.  
"Go on, Jack. I am listening."  
"I thought you might. This cookie is a combination of all the things that make a cookie great. It is about the size of your hand, is both crumbly and gooey, contains chocolate chips, chocolate sauce, chunks of brownie, chunks of Belgian chocolate, chunks of white chocolate, small pieces of hazelnut smothered in cinnamon syrup and all of those in perfect balance. It is also topped with an expertly whipped cinnamon cream and melted chocolate sauce, and with a swirl of whipped caramel to add a little touch of class."  
He gave them a couple of seconds to take that in, and Bunny leaned forward, suddenly interested. By the moon, the mischievous, conniving little underhand, bribery artist might just have managed it...  
North was torn.  
He sat, in his thinking pose, for several moments, until Jack finally gave a grin and a fake look of surprise.  
"Oh, and did I forget to say that it was still warm?"  
He swept the lid off, and they all gasped as a halo of light seemed to float around the cookie, inspirational and moving music filling the air...  
"Sandy!" Bunny said, rolling his eyes, and the golden guardian, having arrived just in time to witness Jack's masterpiece of persuasion, gave a small grin and the music faded out, as did the halo.  
But the cookie... The mother of all cookies lay in the centre of the tray, sending out enticing aromas and looking like... well, the holy mother of all cookies.  
Wide, thick and still warm, chocolate still dripping slowly off of the sides, it was death by sugar, but even Tooth was entranced.  
North took one look, and lasted the whole of three seconds before stamping a foot in childish frustration.  
"Okay Jack, you win. I have been broken and am miserable excuse for role-model..."  
Jack shrugged, grinning,  
"But, on the other hand, you have the cookie that I consider to be my finest work to date."  
Then he swept out a small tray and revealed three more of the cookies, smaller, but equally enticing, and grinned widely.  
"Anyone else?"

To everyone's immense surprise, Tooth was the first there, and eagerly swiped a cookie, hovering over it protectively. Sandy wasn't far behind, but Bunny looked a little apprehensive.  
"Ya know mate, I really don't want to have my chocolate shown up..."  
Jack shrugged.  
"Oh, well, in that case, I guess you don't want to-"  
The delighted gasp from Tooth and the explosion of fireworks from Sandy as they bit into their cookies, and the fact that North had been stunned into silence by the awesomeness of the explosion of flavours and general too good to be trueness of the cookie in his hand had Bunny backtracking.  
"Well now, I never said I didn't want to-"  
"Oh no, If you don't want me to-"  
"Give me the cookie, Frostbite."  
"What if I don't want to?"  
"Then I'll... I'll..."  
Bunny blinked as he realised his boomerang was gone, and Jack took it from behind his back in mock concentration.  
"This what you're looking for Kangaroo?"  
Bunny blinked. How on earth had he... He shook his head. He had more important things to worry about.  
"Give me the cookie Frost. I'm serious..."  
The ecstatic moans from behind them had Jack rolling his eyes and Bunny even more desperate to see what the fuss was about.  
Jack gave him his '_come get me then_' grin, and the Pooka grinned, reaching behind his back grabbing a length of rope that was wrapped around his boomerang sheath.  
Jack blinked.  
"What you gonna do with that?"  
Bunnymund grinned, and swirled the rope in the air where it became clear what it was. The lasso whipped out and landed around Jack's foot, much to the guardians startled surprise.  
"Ya forget," Bunny said with a grin, "I'm an auzzie mate."  
Jack gave him a look of grudging approval and sighed, flying closer and handing Bunny the small tray, though the Pooka had no idea how he had managed to keep it from falling, which he had kept balanced on his hand.  
"I'll give you that. Very impressive. Now eat your damned cookie."  
Bunny took it, and the last thing he heard before he took a bite and was lost to the land of day dreams and rainbows and dancing eggs was Jack calling Phil's name and saying something about a holiday...

Phil and the other yeti's were either dancing about, playing cards or lounging about, and generally having a great time. Jack grinned as Phil gave him a snappy salute and returned the gesture, before heading off to see whether the guardians had recovered.  
Apparently they had. If it could be called that.  
North was skipping around his study-yes, skipping- and whistling a random tune as he worked on his designs, Tooth was helping, in between doing cart-wheels in the air and uttering delighted giggles. Sandy was likewise cart-wheeling, or generally spinning in a daze and Bunny was... well... The Pooka was grinning like an idiot and idly staring into space.  
Jack sighed, deciding that it might be best to leave off the cooking for a while, and rolled his eyes at Baby Tooth as she flew into the room.  
_"What happened?"_ She chirped, watching Tooth spinning and Sandy cart-wheeling and North skipping and Bunny dozing with a very bemused look, and Jack sighed.  
"Well Tinkerbell, it all started this morning, when I felt like making cookies-"  
"Ahh, sugary cookie goodness all bundled up in more sugar and chocolate and cookie..."  
Tooth said dreamily, and Jack and Baby Tooth both stared at her. It was a few seconds before Baby Tooth managed to shake herself out of her shock, and pulled a small lock of Jack's hair to break him out of his.  
The youngest guardian blinked, then rolled his eyes and sighed.  
"Like I said, it all started when I felt like... cooking. Just casually cooking nothing in particular..."

* * *

**So, Love it? Hate it? Thumbs up? Thumbs down?  
I know it was more crackish...ey and OOC than most of my previous ones, but hope you enjoyed it all the same!  
Anyway, please review and let me know!**

**Oh, and I'm afraid there will be only one update tomorrow. I want to get the April Fool fic done, and it should be up the day after...  
Then, after that, It will hopefully be back to my usual two updates. For a while at least, because I have loads of exams coming up, and won't be able to update as regularly in a couple of weeks time...**

******(I'm not quite sure that made any sense, but yeah... I think I may have brained my damage with all the life and shizzle... wait, what? GAH!)**  
But enough about me, and my descent into a swirling spiral of insanity and doom...  
Teeheehee... Unicorns and Bunny rabbits should be bestest buddies...  
(You worried yet? I am... Hmm, must be a sugar high from imagining Jack's cookies, Lol :D )

**Till next time, guys, Raven xx**


	15. Blizzard of 68 (aka Faith and Belief)

**Jack finally explains Easter blizzard of 68. Warning, bring tissues. Lots of tissues...  
My own, terribly angsty and tear-fuelled attempt... The only thing that came to mind that wasn't clichéd or that had not already been used far too many times... This time, it wasn't Jack being angry, it wasn't Jack being upset about Bunny or a spirit or his family or some kind of child abuse flashback...  
What if he'd once had another believer?(Yeah, I bet that caught your attention... :D )  
And to Lliri and NailPolishPoison for the follow and/or fave :D  
Enjoy...**

* * *

Bunny rolled his eyes, sitting up from the tree he was leaning against, as Jack leapt out of a tunnel and grinned at him.  
"What do ya want, Frostbite? It's me off season..."  
"I... err... I was just wondering if you were busy?"  
Bunny rolled his eyes, realising something was up.  
"Just being not busy. I can take a break. What's up?"  
"I... Well... You know the blizzard in 68?"  
"How could I forget... What about it?"  
"I-I just wanted to tell you what actually happened. It wasn't what you think."  
Bunny raised his eyebrows.  
"You weren't just causing trouble?"  
"Actually... No."  
Bunny blinked, then sighed, shuffling over to make room for Jack to sit on the edge of the grass bank next to him.  
The spirit did so, then sighed. Bunny spoke first, however.  
"Why bring this up now Frostbite?"  
"I-It's a long story."  
Bunny sensed the inner turmoil the younger guardian seemed to be in, and gave him a reassuring smile.  
"Then fire away."  
Jack sighed, then spoke up.  
"Well, it started when I was flying past a window..."  
_

**The day before Easter, 45 years ago...**

_Jack Frost flew past the window of an orphanage, wondering why the wind was insisting that he fly this way, and froze as something caught his eye.  
He flew back a bit, staring in, and smiled as he saw a young girl, who couldn't have been older than eight, drawing snowflakes.  
Then he frowned as he saw a small tube leading out of her nose to an oxygen tank.  
She was ill... Badly.  
He slowly shifted the window open and dropped inside, closing it behind him, quietly, so as not to disturb her.  
Pacing over, he looked over her shoulder and gasped as she turned around and looked right at him. Shocked at first, then she smiled.  
"Are you Jack Frost?"  
He nodded, mouth agape, and stuttered.  
"Y-you can... you can see me...?"  
She nodded, then pointed to her book.  
"Nurse reads me stories about you. I've always thought you were more better than the other magic people. Like Santa and the Easter Bunny."  
"Y-you do...?"  
She nodded.  
"I like snow. Hey, can you make it snow?" She started coughing, and Jack instinctively held a hand out to help her, not immediately registering that he could touch her.  
He blinked, about to pull away, before he realised that... he was touching someone. He could touch someone... And she could see him.  
Without the slightest hesitation, he wrapped her in a hug, and the coughing subsided.  
He smiled at her, some kind of brotherly instinct coming over him.  
"What's your name?"  
"Faith."  
"That's a beautiful name. You like snow huh?"  
She nodded, and Jack smiled, twirling his staff.  
A few delicate, perfectly formed snowflakes fell from the air and landed on her palms, staying there for a few seconds before melting.  
She gasped in delight, and Jack smiled at her.  
"There... What do you think."  
She giggled.  
"Pretty... Make more?"  
He nodded, and more of the flakes fell._

_He stayed there for a couple of hours, simply making snowflakes, then making them disappear.  
Then he heard footsteps and blinked.  
"I have to go."  
She looked at him, wide eyed, and looked as if she was about to cry.  
"C-can't you stay...?"  
He started to shake his head, then he stopped and smiled.  
"Sure. But you can't tell anyone I'm here, okay? It has to be a secret..."  
She smiled, as he put a finger to her lips, smiling, and she nodded.  
"Okay."  
He lifted her into the bed, and she snuggled down as he tucked her in, surprising even himself as he kissed her lightly on the forehead.  
"There. Comfy?"  
She nodded, and Jack stepped away as a friendly looking nurse, looking to be about twenty years old, swept into the room.  
"Hello sweetie, how are you feeling?"  
"Fine. Much better! Can I go out and play?"  
The nurse was hiding something in her smile, and Jack realised he wanted to know what.  
"Not today, sweetie. Maybe when you get a bit better, okay?"  
She sighed.  
"Okay."  
The nurse tucked her in a little more, and kissed her cheek.  
"Get some sleep, okay sweetie?"  
She nodded, and the nurse smiled, walking out.  
Jack hopped over to Faith, and balanced on his stick.  
"Hey, you tired?"  
She nodded, and Jack felt something flooding his chest with warmth, some kind of familiarity he couldn't place, and he started singing a small lullaby.  
"Hush, hush, time to be sleeping_  
_Hush, hush, dreams come a-creeping_  
_Dreams of peace and of freedom_  
_So smile in your sleep, bonny baby..."  
Whilst he was singing, he made more snowflakes fall, and she sighed, happily.  
"Thank you Jackie..."  
"No Problem, you get some sleep, eh?"  
She nodded, and mumbled something.  
"Can... make it... snow tomorrow... please?"  
He smiled.  
"Sure thing Snowflake."_

_He started singing again, and she eventually drifted off. He kissed her lightly on the forehead again, and waited for a few moments before he left the room, trying to find the nurse. He didn't have to go far.  
"She was smiling and laughing Doctor. She looked happy."  
That was the nurse. A male voice answered, weary, and filled with sadness.  
"I'm sorry, Ruth, but her condition is terminal... I'm surprised she managed to keep going this long..."  
Jack blinked. They couldn't mean...  
"But Faith is such a happy girl... It's not fair, Marcus."  
"I know... but we can just make her comfortable Ruth. Believe me, I wish there was some way but..."  
Jack froze again, then backed away, missing the rest of what the doctor said.  
No... Not...?  
He raced back to Faith's room, and her fingers clutched his as she slept.  
Jack didn't let go, even as the night passed into Easter morning, and he smiled as he watched her open her eyes. Smiled as they lit up at the sight of him.  
"You stayed...?"  
"Sure did, Snowflake. I'm gonna stay right here. Hey, watch this..."_

_He hopped over to the window, and with a whirl of his staff, snow began falling across the city.  
She gasped in delight, and laughed, then she sighed, trying to get up, and the sigh devolved into a coughing fit.  
Jack hurried over to her, rubbing her back and letting him grasp her hand as tears streamed down her cheeks with the coughing.  
Suddenly, the door opened and the nurse, Ruth, came rushing in.  
"Oh, sweetie, come here..."  
She sat next to him, and everything passed in a blur as the coughing continued, the doctor came rushing in and they all started crowding her.  
Her eyes were frantic as they searched for him.  
"Jackie!"  
Ignoring the icy feeling that came with being walked through, he flew to her bed again, letting her grab his hands, and her eyes met his.  
"Shh, I right here Snowflake, I'm not leaving. I won't leave you..."  
Her eyes kept locked onto his, even as her grip got weaker, and they ignored the frantic cries from the surrounding adults.  
Jack, still holding her gaze, pushed away the pain, not wanting to make her feel afraid, and filled his eyes with their usual mischief and sparkle.  
"Hey, remember those snowflakes? They were pretty huh? And now it's snowing over the whole city... Just for you. Your own little snowy Easter Sunday..."  
She smiled, and Jack gripped her hand tighter, dropping his staff to the floor as he used his other hand to stroke her hair, and he began singing...  
"Hush, hush, time to be sleeping_  
_Hush, hush, dreams come a-creeping_  
_Dreams of peace and of freedom_  
_So smile in your sleep, bonny baby..."  
She smiled at the sound of his voice, the adults all but forgotten, as he repeated the soothing verse of the lullaby over and over again, his eyes never leaving hers.  
He continued to sing as her eyes closed, stroking her hair and she had a smile on her face as her breathing slowed.  
Slower and slower, just as the speed of Jack's singing slowed, and her breathing finally started becoming laboured.  
Jack crouched over her, kissing her on the forehead, and whispering.  
"Shh, it's okay snowflake, I'm right here... I'm still right here, I'm not leaving... I'm not gonna leave you..."  
Her breathing became more shallow, and she started crying with the pain and odd coughing.  
Jack's cool fingers wiped the tears away, as he sang to her, one hand wiping away the tears and brushing through her hair, and the other still enclosed in both of hers.  
"Hush, hush, time to be sleeping..."  
The tears stopped, the coughing stopped, the gasps of pain stopped, and she smiled softly.  
Eventually, to the sound of Jack's voice, she smiled lightly and the steady thrum of her heart finally ceased.  
Jack felt as though someone had torn a hole in his chest, as his first believer, and the first human he had ever truly cared for in over three hundred years, even having known her for less than a day, passed on.  
Ice cold tears broke out across his cheeks, and he found himself hugging Faith, his little snowflake, closer, careful not to move her too much.  
The cries of the adults in the room were finally beginning to become audible and he let his tears fall as he kissed her forehead, wiping away a tear that hadn't fallen from her pale lashes, and stroked a loose strand of hair behind her ear one last time, before getting to his feet, gently easing his hand out from between hers.  
"Sweet dreams, Snowflake..." he whispered, and fled.  
He stopped a few blocks away, right near to the park, and finally let his sobs out. His heart felt like it was tearing in two, and the snowfall picked up, even as he tried to stop it.  
It took hours for the tears to stop, and for Jack to be able to pull some control over the snow, but by then, the city was already covered in a huge blanket.  
A single snowflake fell in front of him, blown by the wind, and he let it land on his palm, recognising it as one of those he had created in the room.  
"How did..." He stopped himself. The wind couldn't answer.  
With a breath, he encased the snowflake in an ice so clear it could have been crystal and tucked it into his pocket as he got to his feet, tear tracks still visible on his cheeks.  
__

"You found me about half an hour after that..." Jack said, finishing his tale, and feeling tears falling down his cheeks.  
He ran a hand along his staff, or, more specifically, to a small iced part, and it melted revealing a small crystal that Jack plucked from it, before looking to Bunny, who, to Jack's astonishment, had tears of his own in his eyes.  
"I-I'm so sorry Jack..."  
He nodded, and took a deep breath, trying to hold back the tears, before holding out the crystal.  
Inside was a tiny, delicate snowflake.  
"I still have it... It never left me, not once over the last few decades... How can you forget the first person who ever believed in you...? I only brought it up now because I was kinda thinking back to it and... well, yeah..."  
The tears made their way free again, and he froze it back into the staff, getting to his feet.  
"I... I need to go somewhere..."  
Bunny nodded, realising that he would want to be alone for a bit, before surprising him again and pulling him into a hug.  
"I'm really, so sorry Jack... You wanna talk, ya can come right back 'ere, ya understand?"  
"Yeah... Thanks Bunny."  
Bunny watched him tap a tunnel and leap through, and sat back down, staring at nothing and thinking about nothing. Just nothing...  
Especially not about how he'd shouted and nearly hit the young spirit when he had pretty much just had his heart broken...  
_

Jack flew to halt outside the window of the orphanage. He hadn't been there since that Easter in 68...  
It looked empty now.  
He quietly opened the window and let himself in.  
He ran a hand along the edge of the bed, before sighing and walking down the corridor.  
It was quiet. Of course it was, it was the middle of the night.  
He blinked as he felt a hand tugging on his hoody and looked down to see a small girl looking at him with wide, tired eyes.  
"Are you him?"  
He smiled at her.  
"Who's that?"  
"The boy nursey Ruth speaks about. She said he was friends with a little girl who died here... She said he was special and we should believe in him."  
"What was his name?"  
"Jackie Frost..."  
He blinked, then smiled, a warm feeling flooding through his chest.  
"Yeah, that's me... What's your name?"  
"Laura. Hey, are you magic?"  
He smiled, and waved his staff, letting snowflakes fall.  
"Is that magic?"  
She laughed, and Jack blinked as a shadow fell over him. He looked up to see an old-ish woman, looking to be about sixty five, smiling at him.  
"They said she was delusional, you know. The doctors. But I saw her eyes. Saw the way she smiled. Saw the way her hands grasped something I could not truly see. Saw her tears freeze slightly before vanishing... And heard a faint lullaby. Then caught sight of a flash of blue vanishing from the window into the snow, out of the corner of my eye." She smiled again.  
"You made her happy. You gave her something to believe in..."  
Jack blinked, then smiled, sadly.  
"Faith was the first to believe in me."  
"But not the last."  
"Not the last. Thank you..."  
He ruffled Laura's hair, before nodding to the nurse, who smiled at him.  
"No, Thank you, Jack Frost."  
He gave her a grin.  
"Keep an eye out for snow this Easter...?"  
"You can be sure of it."

A few minutes later, and he was flying again, heart much lighter than it had been before.  
To have the belief of an adult? To have the belief of children around the world?  
It felt good.  
But he knew that the belief of his little snowflake would always be something he cherished.  
No matter how many years may pass...

* * *

**So... ?**  
**What do you think...? *tentatively grins...***  
**Reviews? Please?**

**I know some of it wasn't all that... realistic and shizzle. But hope you found it a good read all the same...?**


	16. Jack Meets April Fool (Enough Said)

**Meeting April Fool... Yup, you heard right! April Fool has finally come into the scene!  
I thought quite hard about how to do this, and decided on this approach. Of course, April Fool could easily make a reappearance, so any more ideas or requests, just give them in a review at the end of the chapter XD  
**

**Thanks to WRATH77, TheLightOfDarkness95, Geraldine9987, Zfirewolf, Month4, TheEpicallyAwesomeME(modest name, eh buddy?) *eye roll and huge grin*, SadieYuki, Nightmare-Maker and supersmach for the faves and/or follows since the last chapter!  
Oh and thanks to jackfrostisreal18, for following and faving both me and the story! Thanks a lot, (s)he? of the very awesome and far too true and inspiring name :D**

**And this is gonna be one of the longer chapters, (nearly 5000 words! GAH!) but I'm sure you guys will understand the need for it when you read it :D  
Enjoy!**

* * *

North stared at the person-or rather, spirit- that had just entered his study. The young man, looking to be in his early twenties but really being almost 500 years old, was grinning widely, his eyes full of mischief, and he casually leant against the door-frame, arms crossed.  
"Hello North. It is good to see you again, my old friend. It has been far too long."  
"Not long enough…" North muttered, with a grin, and cautiously got up from behind his desk.  
"And how have you been, Fool?"  
April fool shrugged.  
"Watching pranks, playing pranks, inventing new pranks… So can't complain. Though I do have to ask… Rumour has spread over the last couple of centuries of a trickster to rival even me… Why have I never had the privilege of meeting Jack Frost?"  
North rolled his eyes.  
"Because we decided we would like to have some of the earth left standing. Is that what brings you to Pole?"  
"Actually, yes. I was hoping to meet the guardian of fun. He seems like just the person to match me…"  
"You are not the only one to have said that…" North said, thinking back to what Jack had told them of what Pitch had said. "And I really would not recommend saying those words to him… Might bring back some unsavoury memories."  
April Fool's face lit up.  
"So I get to meet him then?"  
"Meet who?"  
This was Bunny as he entered the room, and he froze at the sight of April Fool.  
"Oh no… North! Jack is literally half a minute behind me! We have to get into defensive positions!"  
April Fool blinked, then turned to North, a questioning look in his eyes as Bunny dove behind the desk, boomerang drawn.  
"Is it really that bad?"  
"Pitch was seen laughing as he read one of Bunny's nightmares. About you two meeting."  
"… Ah. Hello Bunnymund."  
"Hello April. Please don't blow up Santoff Claussen?"  
"… I can't guarantee anything."  
"Great… North? Mind if I retreat?"  
He went to tap a tunnel, but North grabbed his ears and hauled him to sit on the sofa.  
"No. If I face disaster, so too do you."  
Bunny scowled, then heard Jack's whistle and leapt behind the sofa, peeking over the top.

Jack flew into the room, Baby Tooth on his shoulder chattering to him, and froze as he caught sight of the spirit. There was no doubt who he was…  
"Ah, Jack Frost I assume?"  
"Yup. No need to ask who you are… though I wonder why Bunny is still within the same hemisphere…?"  
"North decided they would be going down together."  
"Ah. Now it all makes sense. Nice to finally meet you Ape… Can I call you Ape? Makes life so much easier."  
"… Sure. And I'll just stick with Jack?"  
"Everyone else does. Unless it comes to the kangaroo. I sometimes think he finds it impossible to say my name."  
"Kanga- Oh, Bunnymund?"  
April Fool looked at Bunnymund, eyebrow raised, then grinned.  
"I can see where you're coming from."  
"I know right? See Bunny? I'm not the only one."  
If he wasn't too busy trying to keep a safe distance, Bunny would likely have tried to catch the younger guardian, but self-preservation instincts had him staying right where he was.  
"Keep talking, Frostbite… "  
"Gladly."  
_

An hour later, and the good start that the two pranking spirits had made to their relationship had devolved into an argument about pranks and prank styles and the best pranks and the pros and cons of the classics and North was simply munching on cookies-baked by Jack of course- and hoping that they wouldn't try and start a war between them.  
Bunny had leapt back to his burrow at the first opportunity and had sent egg messengers to Tooth, Sandy, Shady and a few other spirits he thought would like to know about recent developments.  
The Pole was now, officially, a no go zone.  
"I'm telling you, you can work wonders with a wad of sticky notes, some glue and some glitter!"  
Jack said, gesturing wildly, and April Fool snorted.  
"But it's so small and... small. You need something big! Bold!"  
"I covered North's sleigh in the things, then pelted them with glue, glitter and confetti. Seriously, it was well worth the little effort put into it."  
"But the huger pranks, involving more people, are so much more gratifying!"  
"But they take so much longer to set up, and sometimes the result isn't worth it!"  
"Damn you... You have no idea!"  
"Oh, I have ideas. I have a lot of ideas. Far too many some people would say. But you should never forget the classics-"  
"Not forget, just never use! They are pointless!"  
"How are they? Seriously, it's the fact that they are so cliché that makes them awesome. No-one suspects them, and they pretty much always work!"  
Neither of them noticed Bunny, Sandy and Tooth peeking around the doorway, or the pleading look North sent them, or the determined looks they shared.  
But it took a danger level ten warning for them to leap into action.  
If Jack meeting April Fool was a level eight, then what came next was definitely level ten.  
"Damn it, you young spirits and your arrogance!"  
"Our arrogance? All the newer stuff, you forget about the old!"  
"Oh yeah?"  
"Yeah! For example, dodge this!"  
April Fool was promptly splattered in white and blue paint that Jack had thrown at him in a paint balloon, and North fell over the back of the chair in his haste to get away.  
Time seemed to freeze as April Fool looked down at his jacket, then at Jack, narrowing his eyes and pulling out a slingshot.  
"Oh, you should not have done that..."  
Before he could do anything, however, the two found themselves stuck in a golden bubble.

Jack glared at the door, as Sandy rounded it.  
"Sandy, let us out. "  
The golden guardian signed, shrugging.  
_I like the Pole the way it is, thanks... And it was an order from Bunny, North and Tooth. I could not say no.  
_"Sandy, let me out and I'll forget this ever happened."  
Sandy shook his head, and Bunny spoke up.  
"You two can stay in there until you decide to be civil."  
Jack was about to say something very rude and-most likely- very insulting, when he caught sight of a subtle shake of the head from April Fool.  
He immediately changed tack.  
"I'll show you civil. Just wait till I get out of here, E. Aster Bunnymund!"  
Sandy blinked, and even Tooth winced.  
Using his full name? That was worse than Jack rolling his sleeves up...  
"Well, that can wait till you decide to stop fighting each other."  
Jack glared, but kept his mouth shut, eventually culminating in the guardians leaving the room. Leaving them in the bubble.  
Jack turned to April.  
"You got a plan?"  
"Yes. But it will mean trusting each other."  
Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"I hear you're a man who never breaks his word?"  
"I hear the same about you. Truce? At least till we get out of here and get revenge?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Truce. For now. So, what's the plan oh great and powerful prankster?"

Jack and April spent the next half an hour planning the best pranks, how to arrange them, and when to do it.  
They decided to arrange and plan and prepare as soon as they got out, then be able to watch the fruits of their labour before the night was out.  
Before spending the next day deciding who was the best out of both of them.  
And so, a couple of hours past, and North and Sandy returned when they were actually getting along and laughing about the results of some pranks. Jack had just finished retelling the tale of the prank crusade with Sandy, a tale which had already morphed into legend throughout the spirit world, and both were laughing too hard to notice the arrivals.  
Eventually, North cleared his throat, and Jack blinked.  
"Oh, hey North. Snady."  
"Jack... April Fool. You are both behaving civilly?"  
April nodded.  
"Oh yeah, turns out we have a lot in common. Though I really loved this jacket..."  
Jack shrugged.  
"Sorry. But it isn't permanent paint. It'll wash out."  
"Ah, that's good to know. Anyway, can we get out of here? I have things to do..."  
North nodded, and Sandy dropped the golden cage.  
Jack hastily swooped in and stopped April from hitting the floor when they fell, and landed him upright.  
"Cheers Jack."  
"No problem. So, see you round? I got stuff to do."  
"Likewise. See you round Jack."  
Jack whistled as he flew out, and April Fool nodded to both North and Sandy.  
"I'll be seeing you guys. Ya know, things to do, places to go, people to see and prank. Have fun now..."  
With that, he nodded, shook North's hand, and sauntered out, whistling jauntily.  
North's stomach started rumbling, and Sandy mimed him eating with a question mark.  
North shook his head.  
"No, I'm not hungry... It's just that my belly is telling me something is... wrong. Or that something bad is going to happen."  
Tooth and Bunny joined them, and began worrying when they heard about North's stomach.  
"You don't think that they will try and... team up?"  
Tooth looked extremely nervous as she said it, and North couldn't blame her.  
"For the sake of peace and sanity, I sincerely hope not."  
_

A few hours later, as evening fell, their worries had eased slightly.  
It wouldn't last.  
Suddenly, at dead on Midnight, the lights went out and an April Fool's voice could be heard.  
"You thought to trap the spirit of pranks and tricks and the spirit of fun... without expecting retribution?"  
Bunny sighed.  
"Oh... Baloney. Okay, I know how this goes. Where have we got to go to?"  
"You must get to the far side of the compound to turn on the lights. At that point, me and Jack shall stop whatever we are doing and leave you in peace. Until that time, let the chaos begin..."  
His voice faded out, and four elves ran in carrying torches.  
North sighed as he took one up.  
"Where is Pitch when you need him? I'd give anything for a battle right now..."  
Bunny nodded.  
"Yeah. I'd rather face a hundred... nah, a thousand nightmares than what those two have planned."  
Tooth shivered.  
"I told you we shouldn't have trapped them. Especially not together. Right then." She sighed and flexed her wings. "Let's go face the humiliation..."  
They didn't even make it past the door.  
A bucket of glue, triggered when they opened the door, fell down, coating Bunny in the gloopy mixture before a sprinkling of glitter followed.  
Jack's voice could clearly be heard, from where they had hijacked the speakers, no doubt to make a running commentary.  
"See Ape? I told you. Classic. And they haven't even made it through the door."  
April Fools voice came over as well, sounding grudgingly impressed.  
"Okay, so it worked. I'll give ya that, but what's next I wonder?"  
They all sighed.  
It was going to be a long night...  
_

Jack and April Fool, grinning at each other like loons, were thinking the exact same thing.  
Together, they had planned everything to the last detail... The very last detail...  
They watched on the variety of screens that April Fool had set up, with recording orbs hovering and following the guardians, or hovering in specific places, as the other four made their way up the first corridor.  
Jack snorted with laughter as North absent mindedly pulled on the door, before frowning and face palming, then pushing it.  
"Very smooth Jack. Labelling a push door as pull."  
"Cheers North! Oh, look Ape, they've reached the main workroom..."  
"Aha, I see. Well, this is going to be entertaining..."  
With that ominous comment, they all shared looks before entering the room.  
North head over to a nearby table and handed out a set of walkie talkies.  
"Long range. I have had them in case of emergency for some time now."  
"Like since Jack became a semi-permanent resident here?" Bunny asked, and North nodded.  
"Exactly."  
Jack's indignant voice came over the speakers.  
"Hey! I'm not_ that_ bad- Okay, point taken. Ah well, Ape? Care to do the honours?"  
A small chuckle came over the speakers, and the guardians all sighed.  
"Gladly, Jacko. Pressing huge red button... NOW!"  
Suddenly, the whirring of fans was heard, and North groaned.  
"They are in main console and electric room."  
Bunny looked at him.  
"You mean...? Oh no... What does the big red button do?"  
North gulped, then, as the fans seemed to speed up, dived under a table.  
"Take cover!"  
They wasted no time in doing so, and were just in time to avoid the splattering of streamers and confetti that fell down.  
None-the-less, as they got up, they disturbed the stuff on the floor and it swirled up into a mess, getting pieces of confetti and streamers lodged in fur, feathers and beards.  
"Hey Jack," that was April Fool's voice. "Nice touch with the wind."  
"Why Thank you. You okay down there guys?"  
Bunny growled.  
"Yep, but you won't be when I get my hands on you, Frostbite."  
"Big talk from someone who was just downed by a few pieces of paper..."

The other guardians had to smile at the evident laughter in Jack's voice, and Bunny scowled.  
"You just wait, Snowflake. It is gonna be all the way on when I get my hands on you..."  
"Uhuh. Till then, duck! Oh, wait... Too late."  
This was in response to their next rigged fan going off, and splattering them all with white foam.  
Jack burst out laughing as Bunny shook his fur our and ended up looking like a snowball.  
"And you called me snowflake, Bunny? Ya look like a ball of fluff!"  
Even the other guardians were laughing at the Pooka, who was now literally a walking fluffball, and Jack grinned.  
Here, let me give you a hand...  
He flipped another switch and a dozen fans started up around the Pooka.  
By the time they got switched off, he was literally like a pompom, and Jack could barely speak for laughing, meaning April Fool had to take over.  
"Sorry guys, it seems the young guardian is too busy laughing to speak coherently. Nice Look, Bunnymund. All sweet and cuddly. Anyway, might wanna around!"  
This was to the sudden start up of several blasters surrounding the guardians, which started firing...  
Tooth gave a horrified cry.  
"NO! NOT CNDYFLOSS! Sandy, do something!"  
The golden guardian wrapped them all in a bubble as they were buried in a net of the pick sugary sticky mess, and let it drop as the blasters stopped.  
Jack's voice came over the speakers.  
"Better start eating..."

It took nearly ten minutes for them to force their way out, and Tooth immediately flew off to the nearest pillar and pulled a draw out, stashed with toothpaste.  
North blinked.  
"You have stashes of toothpaste and mouthwash?"  
She nodded, already rushing to a nearby sink.  
"Of course! I have secret stashes everywhere!"  
She scrubbed her teeth for several minutes, until Jack's voice came over the speakers.  
"Err. Sorry Tooth, but did you say secret?"  
The Fairy stopped what she was doing, and blinked.  
"Jack, what did you do?"  
The laughter in his voice was evident.  
"Don't worry. The toothpaste is pretty much normal. Just has a... side effect."  
"S-side effect?"  
"Yup. Hey, North? There is a mirror in the desk on your left. I put it there earlier."  
North fetched it, and Tooth blinked as the rest of the guardians all stared at her, wide eyed.  
She looked in the mirror and gave a startled gasp.  
"JACK! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU, WHAT BUNNY HAS PLANNED WILL BE A PICNIC!"  
Her teeth, now a bright pick from some kind of dye, had the other guardians all trying to contain their laughter, but North was unfortunate enough to let out a small chuckle, and Tooth span on him, pinning him to the wall with one hand and jabbing at him with the other.  
"You think it's funny?"  
The huge guardian was shaking his head, avidly, and inwardly cursing his big mouth.  
"N-no Tooth. Not... not at all..."  
"Good."  
She let him down, and the other two backed away at the look on her face.  
Bunny gave a low whistle.  
"Frostbite? You just made a hell of a mistake..."

Jack gave an indignant sigh.  
"Why assume it was me? I was all for just replacing the toothpaste with mint cream. It was genius here that replaced it with dye. Heck, it would have been permanent if it wasn't for me."  
Then he said something, obviously aimed at April Fool.  
"I told you it was a bad idea."  
"Hey, you failed to mention that she could go all vengeance on me!"  
"Not likely! I just wanted to see you get your ass handed back to you by Tooth."  
"Why you little-"  
Their voices got cut off by the sounds of chasing, yelping and splattering, and North nodded to the door.  
"We must make most of distraction! Go!"  
Jack, who had been about to throw a water balloon, caught sight of them, and gestured to April Fool, who was aiming his paint balloon loaded slingshot at him.  
"Woah, hold it! They're getting away! Go to the failsafe plan!"  
All thoughts of their prank duel forgotten, April Fool slammed down another switch on his elaborate switchboard, and they grinned as protective barriers swung down around the toys.  
"I have to say, having access to stuff like yours really does make life easier..." Jack said, grudgingly, and caught the other switch thrown to him.  
"Why Thank you. If you would do the honours?"  
Jack nodded, and flicked the switch.  
In the workroom, North had to be grudgingly grateful for Jack's thoughtfulness with regards to the toys and all his work, but was none-the-less dreading what was coming.  
A sudden rumbling had them all looking upwards, and they yelled, diving out of the way as a hail of bubbles, foam, confetti and huge, light, blow up balls-ranging from the size of Sandy to the size of North- fell from the ceiling.  
It was almost ten minutes before they could stop slipping and sliding and accidentally hitting each other with splatters of foam or huge balls, and Jack and Fool were laughing the entire time.  
It eve got so bad that Jack could hardly breathe at one point, which had the other guardians slightly worried despite themselves.

None-the-less, they eventually recovered, though Jack was still struggling to stop laughing as tears of mirth streamed down his cheeks, and watched as the guardians eventually managed to make their way out of the workroom at the other side and into a-mercifully empty-corridor.  
But not before North pulled it again, only to find that it was a push door.  
Which had Jack snorting with laughter again, and getting a grudgingly impressed look from Fool.  
"Okay, I'll admit. It was nice touch."  
"And a classic."  
"... Does not make my point invalid."  
"... Can we do this later?"  
"Of course. So, what's next on the agenda?"  
Jack grinned.  
"The 'not so much a prank as just for our amusement' corridors."  
Apparently, the speakers were still on, and Jack grinned as he heard multiple groans.  
"Aww, don't worry guys. It's... not _too_ bad."  
Not too bad turned out to be bad enough.  
The first thing they encountered was an entire corridor taken up with elastic ropes, stretching in a web and making a climbing frame across the entire corridor.  
Tooth found it relatively easy to get through, dodging, ducking or shimmying beneath the different ropes. Sandy likewise didn't have much difficulty. But Bunny got stuck more than once, though even that was not as bad as how North had it.  
Tooth sighed as she turned and saw North, hanging upside down-though they had no idea how- and tangled in various ropes and knots.  
"Err, help would be much appreciated? And also silence on this matter from now until the end of time?"  
Jack's voice, only partly coherent due to his laughter, echoed down.  
"I... I tried to-to tell Ape that but... Sorry North... He wasn't having any- any of it. Damn it. Now I have-have the hiccups..."  
Ape took over.  
"Sorry old friend. Jack did try to tell me to keep this quiet, but I'm afraid I don't work that way. It seems we've figured out why _I _am the spirit of April Fool's day. I am much more willing to talk about other's humiliation..."  
North, finally having been untangled and having gotten to the end of the corridor, scowled, rolling his eyes.  
"Yes. That is why you are so damned irritating."  
Jack blinked.  
"Some history here I'm not aware of?" Then he stopped and thought and sighed.  
"Ah, so something _did _happen in 1873? I've always wondered..."  
Bunny smirked.  
"Mate, we all wondered. Now let's get a move on."  
They rounded the corner and Bunny face palmed.  
"Frostbite, you really are one of the most infuriating people I have ever met."  
Jack grinned.  
"Thanks Bunny. But this one was Ape's idea."

There was a glass wall in front of them, reaching from the floor to the ceiling, and with a small door leading into it. If they had to hazard a guess, they would say there was another of the walls at the other end. And pressed up against the, and filling the space, was a load of small, plastic balls which were only prevented from spilling out because of the small glass door.  
It was a giant ball pool that took up the entire corridor.  
Jack grinned.  
"Have fun guys..."  
As soon as Bunny opened the door, he immediately hopped out of the way as a cascade of balls came thundering down. It finally started to dwindle, and they sighed as they saw that the balls still came up to Bunny's waist.  
Tooth and Sandy both groaned when a small glass roof came down behind the glass, and left about two feet of space above the balls.  
No flying then. They would have to walk it...  
Funnily enough, Tooth and Bunny really enjoyed it, and started acting very childishly, burying each other and having ball fights.  
But North had seen the tell-tale snowflakes landing on their faces and had grinned.  
_Nice try Jack,_ he thought,_ but they are still not gonna let you out of this one...  
_Several minutes of battling against plastic balls later and they were finally on the opposite side of the corridor. North sighed in relief as he realised that they were nearly at their destination, and cautiously pulled the door, relieved when it opened.  
He didn't see anything wrong, so took a step forward and immediately slipped on a small patch of ice. His fall was broken by a layer of cling-film which stretched across the door, before he tumbled forward, getting himself completely stuck in the- previously so smooth as to be invisible-layers of cling film. Even the other three guardians were laughing at North's face as he finally stumbled to a halt.  
A few minutes later, and they had all managed to get him unwrapped. Though no-one would say it, they knew that the pranks had been nothing like as bad as they could have been, and they no doubt had Jack to thank for that. After all, he knew how important it was to not _completely _destroy Santoff Claussen… Not that it stopped Tooth wincing every time she caught sight of her teeth in various reflective surfaces.

The last door, and they all drew straws –or, rather, sticks of candy- to decide who would go first.  
With a glare at the others, Sandy tossed his tiny candy stick at North's head, and cautiously floated through, getting rewarded with a bucket of flour falling on his head. Flour not water? He had a feeling Jack was behind that particular safety precaution…  
April Fool didn't really show too much care for safety and acknowledgment of barriers…  
With the prank having already been played, Tooth flew through. Then Bunny and North.  
But the last two activated something that the others hadn't.  
North gave a yelp as his foot got caught on the small trip wire, and Bunny only had time to sigh exasperatedly at him before they were coated in glue, glitter, feathers and paint, all from upturned buckets that had been tipped over by tripping on the wire.  
It was North who, after she had stopped giggling, pulled down the huge lever and turned the lights and what not back on.  
Jack and April Fool grinned as they walked in, then Jack sighed.  
"Now, Bunny? Let's be civil and mature about th-WOAH!"  
He flew up out of the reach of Bunny's paws, but his relief was short lived as Tooth gave him a huge pink, yet completely evil grin.}  
"Hey, now Tooth? Come on… You don't really wanna-"  
He gave up and chose to give a yelp instead, hastily flying away through the corridor with all the speed he could muster, a vengeance seeking Fairy and the guardian of dreams on his tail.  
April Fool was laughing, before he noticed the other two staring at him.  
He held up his hands, backing away slightly.  
"Now, fella's, I'm sure we can talk this through like-Okay, maybe not."  
He turned and legged it, North and Bunny running behind him uttering war cries and armed with paint blasters that Bunny had stashed in the room before, in preparation of an occasion such as this.  
_

Jack stumbled to a halt in the middle of one of the workrooms, and the split second hesitation on what direction to take gave the other two enough time to catch up.  
He gave them a weak grin.  
"Err… Hey…?"  
Too late. They both dive bombed him and Sandy managed to snag him in a dream net, leaving Tooth to leap in and start tickling him.  
Jack was half gasping, half laughing as he tried to wriggle his way out of it.  
"Tooth! Tooth come-come on… stop it! Tooth! Okay! I'm Sorry!"  
He was left trying to get his breath back as Tooth and Sandy high fived, and Jack eventually flipped into the air, tossing Tooth a tube of mouthwash.  
"Here. I had to talk Ape down from permanent dye. Guy seems to have no respect for boundaries or any knowledge of lines you should not cross…"  
Tooth eagerly started swilling her mouth out at the nearest sink, and Sandy signed something quickly.  
_Flour not water?  
_Jack shrugged.  
"Again, no idea of lines and boundaries."  
_Ah. Thanks. I assume you will be having the last laugh?  
_Jack grinned.  
"He doesn't know it yet, but yes."  
It was just then that April Fool traipsed in, covered in red and green paint, and grudgingly congratulating the two guardians on their aim.  
North called up to Jack.  
"Jack! Rooms are tidied already?"  
"I paid the elves and Yeti's off with cookies."  
"Ah. Thank you."  
"No Problem. I'm assuming you're going then, Ape?"  
"I have a Pooka with anger management issues pointing a paint blasting gun at me. What do you think?"  
"… Good point. Hey Bunny, you look like you could use a shower?"  
He dodged the half-hearted blast of paint, and grinned.  
"Well, that was fun. Bunny, do you want to lift the quarantine you put around the Pole now?"  
_

April Fool was whistling as he entered his flat, above the Joke shop-aptly named April Fool's- and walked into his lab.  
Then he stopped.  
And he gaped.  
And he cracked his knuckles as he took in the fact that the entire room was full of pink candy floss.  
"Jack Frost, you are so going down…"  
It would be a few months before he would be able to make his comeback, but it would be worth the wait…

* * *

**What did you think guys? It wasn't as good as I wanted it to be(I actually scrapped the first few attempts, which is why it topok so long to upload), but please review and let me know what you thought!  
I was going to make this two fics, but decided to give you guys just one huge whump/load of pranking goodness :D Hope you approved...?  
Some of these awesome prank ideas either came from, or were inspired by Lliri and Night-Fury1.  
Thanks guys! I appreciate it!  
(Oh, and next, we meet more of the few friends Jack had over his 300 year existence)**

* * *

**Okay, and this is just a one-off footnote of a footnote...**

**OVER 100 REVIEWS! OH MY GOD YOU GUYS ARE ALL AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU AND I ACTUALLY DID A HAPPY DANCE THIS MORNING AND WOKE EVERYONE IN THE HOUSE!  
Its the first fic of mine to ever get close to this many reviews...  
****Seriously, I did not expect this kind of response to this fic, and It's really given me a confidence boost! I want to thanks everyone who has taken the time to review, give ideas and generally support me so far in this fic, you are all honestly amazing, and *ridiculously huge hugs* to everyone!**

**Of course, I still really appreciate every single one I get, and fully intend to keep responding to each and every review, so please keep on letting me know what you think!  
Seriously guys, I love you all, you are all amazing and yeah. Thanks so much :D I can't say much more than that :D**

**Raven xx**


	17. An Overdue Catchup Session

**This was written after someone asked to hear more of Jack's past and the friends he had.  
A bit of back-story and context in there too, and I hope you enjoy!  
Oh, and thanks to thankchaosforspellcheck, Riverstone38, SadieYuki and skywright for the faves/follows :D  
****  
**

* * *

Shady smiled as he finally caught sight of who he had been looking for. He could tell, from the last couple of times he'd visited the Pole, that Jack was longing to find his old friends-few though they were- but had next to no time to do so, so he had decided to find them as a surprise.  
It didn't surprise him to find the two together.  
Iceman, -that wasn't his real name, but very few people actually knew it, so Iceman it was- a winter spirit who looked around eighteen, had pale brown hair clear grey eyes and an affinity with ice funnily enough, was laughing as he lounged in a tree. Clover, a seventeen, eighteen year old looking spring spirit with chestnut hair, hazel eyes and an affinity with-you guessed it-clovers, was saying something, whilst twirling her namesake plant between her fingers. It was summer, and the two had nothing much to do.  
A little under two centuries ago, Jack had had a run in with Iceman, and they had gotten along okay. Then the next time they met, it had been at the beginning of spring, and Jack had mediated a dispute between Iceman and Clover, acting much more mature than normal, and it had culminated in the three of them becoming quite good friends. Of course, they hardly ever got the chance to see Jack, seeing as he was always the loner type, but now that his attitude had changed, Shady was going to make sure that the guardian of fun made the most of it.  
It was Clover who first caught sight of Shady and she gave a delighted laugh as she ran over and hugged him.  
"Hey Shade, how have you been?"  
"Good, thanks Clo. How was Spring this year?"  
"Went fine. Have you seen Jack late-"  
"Shady!" Iceman said, interrupting, and Shady grinned.  
"Hey Iceman. I hear that there haven't been any Ice blizzards recently...?"  
"Well, gotta get mature some time or other... You heard from Jack recently?"  
Shady laughed.  
"Well, to answer both of your questions, Yes. He's taken to guardianship like he never took to being a spirit."  
Clover giggled.  
"And the Guardian of Fun too... No surprises there. Is he okay? We heard the guardians have been having trouble with Pitch Black-"  
"He's fine. He could beat Pitch with his eyes closed. And actually, he's the reason I came. He's been so busy lately with everything, that he hasn't had the chance to come find you two. He wanted to, so I figured I'd give him a hand and-"  
"Surprise him." Iceman finished, with a grin "Nice idea. When do we leave?"  
Shady shrugged.  
"Whenever you like. I'd better jump you though, because it's far too cold for Clover around Santoff Claussen."  
"He's at the Pole?" Iceman sounded slightly surprised, and Shady nodded.  
"Yes. Funny thing is, since becoming a guardian, he's much less of the loner type. He's actually spending quite a lot of time with other's now... "  
"About time..." Clover muttered, rolling her eyes, and grinned. "Well, Im all set. Don't see any reason to wait. Iceman?"  
"I'm in!"  
Shady grinned, extending his hands, and they both grabbed one, sharing a look of 'here we go again' as the shadows engulfed them.  
_

Jack was flying around the workshop, hot on the tail of an elf that had stolen a tray of cookies and hidden them, and was trying to catch the jingling creature as it ducked beneath tables, leapt over stacks of toys and dodged pots of paint.  
"Damn it, come here you little- Ahh!"  
Jack yelped as he ducked a football that was thrown at him and scowled, rolling up his sleeves.  
At that gesture, the other nearby elves gave low whistles and started to inch away from the one Jack was after.  
When the sleeves went up, business was going down...  
Jack promptly proceeded with a variety of air acrobatics as he dodged and ducked stacks of toys, work benches, yeti's, beams and pillars in an attempt to catch the cookie thief.  
He finally mnaged it, and held the small, flailing creature upside down with a stern expression.  
"Right, now march back to North and give him the cookies. Or you're on kitchen duty for the rest of the week!"  
The small elf sulked as it walked off, sticking it's tongue out at Jack, who crossed his arms and pointed sternly to the corridor leading to North's study, before grinning as soon as the elf was out of sight.  
A not so subtle cough for attention came from behind him, and he span grinning as he saw Shady, then linking as he caught sight of Clover and Iceman.  
"Nice show, Jacky boy." Iceman said, with a grin, and Clover nodded.  
"Very smooth. Never had you pegged for the mature type tho-Oh!"  
This was as Jack flew into her, lifting her into the air in a tight hug.  
"Hey Clo, what are you guys doing here?"  
She laughed as he put her down, hugging him again before letting go.  
"Shady said you missed us. That true?"  
"Damn right it is."  
Iceman grinned.  
"What? No hug for the Iceman-"  
He was too slow to react and dive out of the way as Jack barrelled into him, both of them flying out the window and into the snow.  
Iceman sat up, laughing as he shook snow out of his hair, and grinned.  
"Well, that was some hello Jackyboy. In the past it was just a grin if we were lucky."  
Jack shrugged, self consciously.  
"Not my fault the kids I know won't take no for an answer. It's a bad habit they've got me into. How ya been?"  
"Good. I hear you've had a hell of a few decades...?"  
"Tell me about it..."

Jack flew them back up to the window, and grinned as they landed inside to see that North was already there and talking animatedly with Clover.  
The huge guardian grinned as he caught sight of Jack.  
"Hey Jack, nice job with elf. Cookies back in place not a minute after I hear you catch him."  
"Hey, you just gotta give 'em the look."  
"Which you still refuse to show and teach me. Anyway, this is Iceman, da?"  
Iceman nodded, gripping North's hand in the firm handshake.  
"Yeah. You must be North."  
"It is that obvious?"  
Jack laughed.  
"You looked in the mirror lately?"  
He span up into the air, out of reach, as North made a grab for him, and grinned, floating on is stomach.  
"Too slow again, Old man. Even Bunny is faster than you..."  
"He is Pooka... Is not fair comparison."  
"Fine. What about Tooth? She's tiny, and she can still dart around."  
"She is fairy. Is still not fair comparison..."  
North was hiding a smile the entire time, as was Jack, and the two visiting spirits realised that it was a running joke.  
Jack grinned.  
"What about Phil? He can catch me now and again. That's more than a fair comparison."  
"... So Shady, how are you?"  
Jack laughed as he floated back to the ground.  
"I knew it. Denial. Anyway, good question Shady. I assume you are behind why these two are here?"  
Clover smiled,  
"Yeah. Must have been tracking us for ages."  
Jack grinned.  
"Well, I'm glad he did."  
North, realising that Jack would want some time alone with his friends, gave a smile.  
"Very well. I will leave the... younger generation, as Jack so aptly does put it, to whatever you do. But no explosions Jack."  
"Hey, I told you it was an accident... I was aiming for Bunny. Not my fault it hit the teddy stuffing machine and covered the entire workshop in it..."  
"If you say so. But I shall see you later."  
He gave them a huge smile, before turning and walking off, leaving Jack to roll his eyes.  
"He doesn't seem to get it. The only place I deliberately cause explosions is in the warren..."  
Iceman blinked.  
"As in... _Aster Bunnymund's_ warren?"  
Jack grinned, gesturing them to follow him and head to the kitchens.  
"Yep. Though I learnt the hard way to not get him covered in red paint... He moans about it for days on end... You guys hungry?"  
Clover grinned as she caught sight of the cookies on the counter, as they head through the door.  
"You've been cooking again?"  
"The cookies make for some awesome bribery material with the elves... And North for that matter."  
Iceman whistled.  
"They must be some good cookies."

Jack gave a sly grin.  
"Those ones there are the brownie ones-"  
He didn't get a chance to finish as Iceman and Clover both snatched one up and started eating.  
"Man," Iceman said, taking another bite, ""It's been way to long since I've had one of these."  
Clover grinned, then blinked.  
"Oh, and it's a good thing Shady found us when he did. We've been wanting to visit for some time now." Her and Iceman shared a look, and Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"Any particular reason...?"  
"Well, you know what you said about Winter and Spring being close for a reason, and that a winter and spring sprite together wasn't unheard of?"  
He blinked, a grin starting to form, which morphed to an all-out laugh of delight as Clover showed him a small band of wood, carved with interlocking clovers and snowflakes.  
Iceman grinned as he displayed his own one of the pair, and Jack grinned at them both, not caring that he looked like an idiot.  
"About time you two followed my advice. I've been telling you not to give a damn about what the other seasonals think, for years now."  
Iceman shrugged, his fingers interlacing with Clover's.  
"And we should have listened sooner. Sorry you couldn't be at the ceremony, but we had it on the spring equinox in 58. You were nowhere to be found and-"  
"Yeah," Jack said, with a sigh, thinking back to the particularly bad avalanche season he was trying to control. "Had a bad winter in the Himalayas and some idiots thought it was a good idea to climb in avalanche country. I was busy for weeks up there... I'm happy for you two, though. And it definitely took you long enough."  
Iceman shrugged.  
"Try telling your winter spirit parents that you've fallen for a spring girl."  
"Yeah," Clover said, with a sigh, "And try telling your full 'spring for the win' sister that you've fallen for an ice guy... Even if he is a nice guy... Get it, An Ice guy... Nice guy... You get it."  
Jack laughed with the rest of them, but jumped as he heard North, apparently just around the corner, talking to somebody and heard a familiar Australian twang when said person replied.  
"Fine, I'll deal with Frostbite later."  
None the less, it was less than a minute later that the giant Pooka appeared in the doorway, arms crossed and tapping his foot idly.  
"Hey Frostbite."  
Jack had leapt out of his chair and was cautiously pacing behind Iceman.  
"Bunny... How did the um... 'Get rid of the dye' shower go?"  
He stifled a smirk as Bunny glared at him.  
"I'll have you know, it took the better part of the last three days to get rid of the pink. I still have a patch of blue on my shoulder."  
Jack grinned, before pasting on a look of mock sympathy.  
"Oh, yes. I see it. Don't worry. Should come out in... ooh... a day or four?"  
"A day or- I know how long it takes, Frosty, I've been pelted with the stuff enough. You just wait, I'll get you back for all of this..."  
"You've been trying for months and haven't succeeded yet."  
Iceman grinned, deciding to butt in.  
"Sorry Bunnymund. You can't prank Jack. Many have tried and all have failed. I doubt even April Fool himself would dare try..."  
"He already has..." Bunny said, grudgingly. "He failed. Or rather, they both teamed up and whupped our asses. And call me Bunny. You guys must be Iceman and Clover? Jack's mentioned you before. Oh, hey Shady."  
"Hey Bunny. Nice shoulder."  
"... Don't even go there, little man."  
The small smile showed that this was yet another running joke, and Clover smiled.  
"Jack mentioned us? What ya been saying Snowman?"  
Bunny snorted.  
"Snowman? Oh, that's a good one."  
"Dropit, Plushie..." Jack said, glaring good-naturedly, and then shrugged. "Just that I really had to try and find the time to track you guys down. Whenever a spare minute came up, it was either Pitch, elves, chaos or cookies... Oh, and the tooth fairy fan club-Not a word, Icey..."  
"Wouldn't dream of it," the ice spirit said, smiling, and Bunny laughed.  
"Hey, I like this kid. Anyway, I'm gonna get going guys. But I'm warnin' ya, Frostbite, this ain't over..."  
"I'm counting on it..."  
Bunny rolled his eyes as he left, and Iceman whistled softly again.  
"Man, you hang with the most awesome crowd..."  
"Somebody been getting their street lingo up to scratch?" Jack teased, grinning, and Iceman shrugged.  
"What can I say? It amuses me. So does seeing people slip over on ice..." Then his face darkened slightly. "I've just about had enough of Ice Black though. He's been getting far too carried away with blasting Ice on the roads. The amount of accidents that he's caused... Could you have a word with him, Jack?"  
Jack blinked, remembering the last time he had come across Ice Black, and grimaced.  
"Yeah. I'll get on that. But, for now, what have you guys been up to?"

The next few hours were a blur of laughter, retelling of old memories and updates on what everyone had been up to. Cookies, brownies and eggnog were consumed by the mouthful and it was only when Phil came in, letting Jack know that Baby Tooth had arrived to see him, that he realised what time it was.  
"Wow, must be nearly midnight... BT doesn't come off shift till ten."  
The other three looked likewise surprised at the news and Iceman got to his feet.  
"We'd better get going Jacky. Mind if we visit again soon?"  
Jack shook his head, grinning.  
"Not at all. North won't mind, so visit whenever you like. I'm here at least three or four days a week now, and North always knows where to find me if I'm not."  
Clover nodded, pulling him into a hug which he was quick to return, before doing the same with Iceman. He and Shady fist-bumped, and Jack grinned.  
"It's been great seeing you guys. Honest."  
"Same here, Jack." Clover said, accepting Shady's hand, and Iceman took the other, preparing for the jump back.  
"See ya soon, Jacky boy."  
"Wouldn't miss it. Unless I get the chance to prank Fool again, at which point I may be a little late..."  
They vanished in a swirl of shadow and laughter, and Jack grinned to himself.  
A few minutes later, Shady popped back.  
"I took them to the forest. They're heading home now."  
He wasn't able to say more, as Jack pulled him into a hug, before letting him go as he wheezed.  
"What was... that for?" he asked, getting his breath back, and Jack shrugged.  
"Being a friend. Finding Clover and Iceman. Making today awesome... I can continue?"  
"No need. I get the gist. I am amazingly, fantastically, incredibly awesome and you should all bow down to my extreme amazingness."  
"... Close enough. You heading home?"  
"Yeah. Two jumps carrying two people all in one day? Really takes it out of you."  
"Okay then. You sure you don't want to stay?"  
"I'll be fine. I'll see you soon Jacko."  
"You got it."

Shady vanished just as Baby Tooth flew into the room, and started pestering Jack with questions about his friends and how his day was.  
Laughing, he proceeded to tell her, and grinned to himself as he broke off bits of cookie for him and Baby Tooth.  
They really had to do this more often...

* * *

**So... do you want to meet Ice Black? (a character that came into my head on the spot and based on the name of Black Ice, and also fits with the name Pitch Black, which was a bit of a bonus) Could he be a new villain?  
Wanna review and let me know? Of course you do, because you are all awesome peoples :D  
Oh, and just to let you know, if Ice Black comes into this, it will not necessarily involve him meeting Pitch but it will involve a lot of trouble for our favourite humans... Okay, enough said.**

**Anyway, what did you think of the chapter?  
Please review and let me know your thoughts!?**

**Raven xx**

******And to Ella, (a guest reviewer) I am actually planning to do one, as you are not the only one who wants to know about that particular moment with the grand canyon and what not :D And if I wasn't? That threat would have had me up and at the laptop keys before you could say Grand Canyon, Lol :D Glad you're enjoying!  
****(Yup, from now on, I will be responding to guest reviews in the footnote!)**


	18. Australian? (aka Yeti's in Balaclava's)

**Jack has Australian accent! Yeah, that's right... But that isn't all.  
This chapter will have shocked guardians, swooning fairies, accents, singing, music, stories about Jack's past, a visit to Jamie... everything that I could cram in, really. Hope you all enjoy!**

**Oh, and thanks to theyleaveshadows, LittleRedRiddingWolf, Ren O'neil, Autumn Amber, majestic-beauty-sealed-in-ice (sorry, wouldn't let me type the name with the full-stops...), werekit, julie93 and Mahou Chibi kitsune for the follows and/or faves and thanks to The Dark Lady55 for faving both me and the story!**

* * *

They all stared at him. Bunny, North, Tooth, Sandy and even Phil. The fairies likely would have too, but they were all dazed from exposure to the sheer shock and swoon-worthiness of what Jack had just done.  
So yes, they all stared at him in utter shock, but Bunny? He was... well. His mouth was opening and closing so much he looked like a goldfish. Quite impressive for a huge Rabbit, Jack thought. Then sighed.  
"What? What's so astounding?"  
Bunny was the first to speak... though it wasn't so much speaking as stuttering.  
"Y-You... you have... you... have an... you... accent..."  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"Good, now try to string more than two words together, Kangaroo..."  
Of course, the little fairies in the room, having just recovered from the first time Jack had spoke in this new-or rather-old accent of his, promptly swooned again.  
Tooth shook her head, a smile beginning to form.  
"Jack? Just how many accents do you have?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"It'd take a while to count... But quite a few."  
"And you never thought to let us know that you..." she coughed, hiding her giggle, "...that you could go _Australian_?"

**Ten Minutes Earlier...**

Jack scowled as Bunny started going into an even stronger Australian accent than usual, in an attempt to shield what he was saying.  
"Won't work, Bunny. I can understand every word."  
"Oh really? D'ya think sa mate?"  
"I do think so."  
"Well, we'll hav'ta see aba' that then, won't we, eh?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Damn right."  
A few minutes later, and the other three guardians were looking between the two, completely clueless to what Bunny as saying, but astonished that Jack seemed to understand perfectly.  
Bunny was likewise astounded, and kept up the strength of his accent for a further five minutes until he finally gave up and returned to normal.  
"What the 'ell, Frostbite? How'd ya do that?"  
Jack grinned, an internal struggle warring.  
_Do I...? Don't I...?_  
This struggle went on for a matter of seconds, until Jack shrugged, grinning.  
"I dunno mate, must be the Auzzie in me, eh?"  
There was a moment of utter shock, before fairies swooned, Tooth gasped in delight, North stared, Sandy got himself surrounded by dozens of golden question and exclamation marks, and Bunny just blinked.

And that was how Jack found himself facing a bunny/goldfish, three more stunned guardians and a huge, surprised, Yeti, with a dozen swooning fairies for good measure.  
He grinned. Might as well go for all it was worth, right?  
"Look, I really don't know what ya problem is with an accent? I mean, it ain't like it's the first time I've eva' used one, right?"  
It had initially been quite rugged, but just those few words had worked the accent up to something pretty decent, and Bunny gestured to the sofa, completely bemused.  
"A'right, this a story I wanna hear, Frostbite..."  
Jack grinned, settling back, and dropped the accent-to several dismayed squeals from fairies- as he started telling his story.  
"Well, about half a century after I became a spirit, I decided to experiment with visiting warmer climates. I soon found that with places that were not too close to the equator and were near the sea, where it was cooler, were places I could stay for quite a while. I actually became quite fond of Australia, what with the peace and quiet in some places, and visited regularly, even if I had to stay really near the coast. Then, about thirty years ago, I visited for the first time in ages, and heard the accent for the first time..."  
"Ya'd never heard the accent before?" Bunny asked, surprised, and Jack shrugged.  
"I know, I would have thought I'd have heard it before as well, but it as honestly the first time. With the other accents and languages I can do, it wasn't hard for me to pick it up and... well, yeah. I had one more accent to add to my arsenal. And man, your faces just then were worth every second."  
He laughed as he leapt out of reach of Bunnymund's paws and was accosted by fairies, just like the Pooka had planned.  
Jack had to admire the plan, even as he glared at him.  
_

A few hours later, and Jack flew up to Jamie's bedroom window, tapping on the glass.  
Jamie looked up, then grinned, throwing the window open so Jack could float inside.  
"Jack! You haven't visited in ages."  
"Yeah... Sorry kiddo. I've been busy..."  
"That's alright. You came at the perfect time actually!"  
"Yeah...?"  
"Yeah! I have maths homework!"  
Jack sighed as he let himself get dragged to the desk, and had a sheaf of paper stuck in front of him.  
They worked at the sheets for an hour, Jack giving Jamie a hand with the equations and what not, until Jamie finally gave a sigh.  
"Finally! I thought that was going to go on forever!"  
But Jack' attention had been caught by another sheet of homework.  
"Jack? Helloooooo? Anyone in there?"  
"Hmm? Oh, sorry Jamie. Is this your French homework?"  
Jamie nodded, face turning glum.  
"Yeah. But I can't do it, no matter how hard I try."  
Jack gave a grin and picked up the sheet.  
"Dans la magazin, tu achete...? Oh, it's a 'matching the items' exercise. Whoopie for you. Come on, Kiddo, let's get it done..."  
"... You speak French?"  
"Meh, I had a craze for Paris a few decades ago. You learn to pick things up. Eventually became fluent just as I returned to a liking for Australia. Il y a un problem avec ca?"  
"What?"  
"I said, is there a problem with that?"  
"Oh. Nope, no complaints here. Can you help me with French then?"  
"Course. Let's start by getting this lot done, shall we? Hmm... Question une... Quel age..."  
_

Three hours later, evening was just beginning to fall over Santoff Claussen as Jack arrived back.  
He called Hi to North as he flew past his study, did the same to various elves and yeti's and sighed as he reached the music room, which North had arranged into something which could easily be considered a musicians dream as a surprise for Jack, and he sat himself down at the Piano.  
But this time, he didn't sing his usual kinds of music, he started singing in French instead.  
Of course, Sandy chose this moment to arrive and immediately started filtering the sounds away.  
North, in his study, was almost as surprised as he had been when Jack had started spouting an Australian accent, and got to his feet, making his way up.  
No-one noticed the Yeti, wearing a balaclava to protect his identity, following them up with a video recorded. The leader of Jack's fan Club was not going to let this opportunity pass him by.  
Jack didn't realise that North and Sandy were there until he finished the song, and span, rolling his eyes.  
"Est tu Serious? Tu- Sorry. Reflex. You two could give someone a heart attack sneaking up like that."  
North laughed.  
"Sorry Jack, but when the best musician in the northern hemisphere starts singing French music, you don't really have a choice but to listen. I didn't know you spoke French?"  
Jack shrugged, rolling his eyes and blushing ever so slightly at the compliment.  
"I spent most of my spare time in the country for a few decades about... ooh, a century ago? Language has kinda changed, but you pick up on it. Just got inspired by Jamie's French homework."  
Sandy began signing.  
_What other languages do you speak?_  
Jack started counting them off on his fingers.  
"I'm practically fluent in Spanish, German, French, Italian and Japanese... What? Their culture is one of the best in the world!" He rolled his eyes, before continuing, "I can kinda speak a bit of Greek and Latin, from when I got bored and started a reading frenzy. Oh, and a bit of Russian and Welsh and a few others. Not very well though..."  
North grinned.  
"We can remedy the Russian, da?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Sure. Could be веселье..."  
North laughed, making his way out.  
"Could be fun indeed, Jack. I shall leave you to it for now then."  
"See you later North."  
Sandy grinned as North left and started signing.  
Jack grinned as he translated.  
"You want music for other dreams? I thought you already spoke pretty much every language that has ever been in existence...?"  
_Yes, but I don't think it fair that English speaking countries can benefit from your music if other's cant? It's not very fair on them at all Jack...  
_He gave such a sorrowful look that Jack had to laugh and nod.  
"Okay, I'll see what I can do... But don't you have plenty of music with no words that I've written anyway?"  
... _Okay, okay, so I just want to hear you play more.  
_Sandy gave a huff of annoyance that he had been found out, but Jack rolled his eyes, grinning.  
"Ya only have to ask, Sandman. Any in particular?"  
Sandy grinned, nodding, and signed the song.  
Jack grinned.  
"That's one of my favourites too..."

They were both unaware of the yeti, still recording the music, as Jack played, for another half an hour, until Sandy had to leave.  
Then the yeti had to make a hasty retreat as Jack came flying through the door. But he was too slow in rounding the corner at the end of the corridor, enabling Jack to catch sight of him.  
"Hey!"  
The Yeti yelped, running and ducking and weaving and diving-where had Jack seen that manoeuvre before?- before vanishing through a door.  
The Yeti ripped his mask off and vanished into the crowd of yeti's already in the room, just as Jack span around the door.  
The young guardian scanned the crowd, and huffed as he realised that none of the yeti's were in a balaclava. Then he caught sight of Phil, who was messing with a new Jack in the box, and flew over to him just as he clicked the clasp shut.  
"Hey Phil... Haven't seen a yeti in a balaclava have you?"  
At the bemused look, Jack sighed.  
"Didn't think so. Alright, catch you later..."  
He flew out, and Phil sighed in relief as he opened the box again, revealing the balaclava that he had hastily shut inside, and tucked it into a nearby drawer.  
That had been far too close...

* * *

**Yeah, yeah, I know. Yeti's in balaclava's. But on the up note, Phil is the secret leader of the fan club of musical/Jack! Well done to everyone who guessed that, Lol :D  
But will he ever be found out...?  
All will be revealed in another chapter... though it may be a little while from now.**

**So, what did you think of multi lingo-accent/Jack? Wanna see him again?  
And don't worry, Jamie will return soon :D Can't go missing out our favourite little humans, can we?  
Anyway, please let me know what you think!**

**Raven xx**


	19. Jamie's Birthday

**About time I brought the Burgess kids in properly, right? It took a while to think of an original kind of idea, but this was the result, so please let me know what you think!  
Oh, and he is turning 12, because almost two years have passed with regards to this fanfic and how it continued on from the film :D  
It's gonna be a short-ish one, I'm afraid, but hope you enjoy it all the same :D**

**Thanks to freefall-gypsy, Alternateapocalypse, ParaspriteProtector(for faving me and faving and following the story) and Takumisa777(for faving both me and the story) :D And thanks again to theyleaveshadows, for the recent fave of both me and the story!**

**And, as usual, *hugs* to everyone, and thanks so much to all of you for the reviews, especially all of the guest reviews for the last chapter! I really appreciate them :D *still squealing and doing a happy dance because there are OVER 150 REVIEWS! GAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!*  
And special thanks to majestic-beauty-sealed-in-ice (again, sorry, but dashes in place of full stops) for taking themtime to pm and go into so much detail on the different chapetrs :D That message made my day, Lol :D**

* * *

Jamie was still laughing as they raced from the house, his mothers surprised exclamations that it never normally snowed in august ringing in their ears.  
His birthday had been one of the best to date and it looked like it was about to get even better.  
Sure enough, Jack appeared a few seconds after they arrived in the field, just out of sight of the houses, and was tossing a snowball up and down, grinning madly.  
"Happy Birthday Kiddo!"  
"Thanks Jack! I was wondering if you were gonna come-"  
"Course I did! Not like I'm gonna miss your birthday, is it? North says Happy Birthday too. He couldn't come and say hi, but he gave me something that might make it up to you..."  
He slid out an orb from his pocket, and Jamie gasped, along with his friends.  
"Who wants a quick visit to the Pole?"  
The decision was unanimous, and Jack threw the orb, shouting his destination.  
He gestured the others to go ahead, and he and Jamie, Sophie clinging to his hand, were the last through.  
Jamie gave a startled gasp as they walked through, to find the other guardians there, all grinning and laughing at his expression.  
Jack grinned and nudged him, as Sophie raced to Bunny, shouting 'Bunny! Hop, hop, hop!' and landed next to him.  
"Didn't think we'd let your birthday pass without some kind of celebration, did ya Kiddo? And hey, I got something for ya."  
Jack pulled out a small ice sculpture, and Jamie gave a small 'woah' as he took it, looking at the details and intricate design. It was a small statue of him, surrounded by all of his friends, and the guardians right behind them, Sophie clinging to Bunny's shoulder.  
She may be older, but somethings never seemed to change.  
"D'you like it? It'll never melt... Unless it gets chucked in a fire or something like that-"  
Jack was cut off as his breath got pushed out of him, Jamie squeezing him into a ridiculously tight hug.  
"Ja-mie... Can't... breathe..." Jack took a couple of deep breaths when Jamie quickly let go, and grinned. "I'll take that as a yes?"  
"It's awesome! Thanks Jack..."  
"No problem Kiddo. Now I'd recommend going and enjoying yourself. This is one of the only times I've seen North happy to have people tearing up his workshop..."  
Jamie gave him another hug, and ran across to North and Tooth to say Hi, Sandy busy playing with the children with his dream sand and Bunny busy with Sophie.

Jack floated over to North and grinned.  
"Cheers North."  
"Is no problem Jack. I find I enjoy these children. Must do something for your birthday, da? Wait... When is your birthday Jack?"  
Jack had jumped as North asked that, and shook his head.  
"I-I err... I don't really do Birthdays. Not my kinda thing."  
Something in his gaze must have told North to drop it, and he smiled.  
"Very well, we shall just have to make the Christmas' bigger and better then, da? Must show up long ears over there."  
Jack laughed as the other's all heard Noth's 'whisper' and Bunny glared at him, rolling his eyes.  
"Coming from a huge giant of a man who sneaks down chimneys."  
"I'll have you know that-"  
"Oi!"  
They both stared, incredulous, at Jack, who was floating, hands on his hips.  
"First of all, you-" he pointed to Bunny, "Are a huge bloody rabbit who's favourite hobby is painting pretty, dainty little eggs. And you-" he pointed at North, "Have An army of elves and Yeti's to do most of your work for you. Neither of you have any right to argue the validity of your points, when we all know that a snow day is better than both of your days put together. Right guys?"  
This was to the kids, and even Sandy was waving his arms in the air to show his support for Jack as the kids all cheered.  
Jack grinned as he turned to the dumbstruck pair, and gestured widely.  
"The majority have spoken! Now quit arguing and do something constructive with your time."  
Before they could say anything to that, Jamie had tugged at Jack's foot, and when Jack lowered himself down, whispered something into his ear.  
Jack grinned.  
"I dunno...They're dangerous..."  
"Aww... Please Jack...?"  
Jack laughed.  
"Hey, I taught you the puppy dog eyes kiddo. They won't work on me."  
"Please Jackie...?"  
He was a sucker for that name and they all knew it-though Bunnymund was the only one who thought he had a clue why.  
"Fine. Bunny? Jamie wants to see my swords. Mind if I take him to the warren?"  
Bunny nodded.  
"Sure. But no destroying it."  
"Would I?"  
Before Jack could move, the other kids all ganged up on Jamie, and Jack left them to it as they gave him explicit instructions to remember everything.  
Jack rolled his eyes as he head over to Bunny.  
"We'll be quick, don't worry."  
"I'm not. Just watch it, Frostbite. Those things are sharp."  
"No need to tell me that."  
Jack grinned, ruefully, absent-mindedly rubbing a small scar on his arm that was still visible from his earlier days with the Sai, and rolled his eyes.  
"But he's just an average kid. From what I can remember, most boys at that age are interested in things like that. Especially over the last few decades."  
"I'll take your word for it."  
"Of course. Like you do with everything concerning actual children."

Ten minutes later, and Jamie gasped as Jack let him drop down from his back onto the grass in the warren.  
"Woah..."  
"I said the exact same thing the first time I saw it. Right before making it snow. Come on Kiddo."  
Jack led him over to the small locker room in Bunny's home, and Jamie gave another low 'woah' as he saw the fighting staffs and swords that lined the walls.  
He spent few minutes looking at them all, until he came across Jack's Sai, and reached out to touch them.  
"Woah, woah! Not so fast kiddo. They're attuned to me. I've been using them so long and with my powers that they will freeze your skin if you touch them."  
Jamie stared at him, then grinned.  
"That is so awesome!"  
Jack grinned.  
"Yeah? Then hang on..."  
He took one of his katana's from the wall and unsheathed it, crouching by Jamie.  
"Here. Hold it like... that's it. Like that."  
Jamie grinned as he held the sword, and Jack grinned as he took down his other one and they both head outside.  
"Right, we'll have to be quick. And careful. These are dangerous."

Jack crouched down, and started showing Jamie some moves, very carefully.  
Then rolled his eyes and grinned, nodding when Jamie asked him to display a few more moves.  
Jack spent a few minutes slashing and doing a short practise routine, before rolling to a stop and sheathing the sword, all in one fluid motion.  
Jack was simply staring, awed, and clapping from behind him revealed Bunny, surrounded by the rest of the kids.  
"Nice display Frostbite. We were just wondering what was taking so long."  
Jack shrugged.  
"Sorry. Just thought we'd have a little fun."  
He took back the one Jamie was holding, and slung them both on his back for the moment, grinning.  
"I'm guessing it worked. Hang on, I'll just put them away and we can head-"  
"Well well, Hello again."  
They all span to see Pitch, staring at them.  
"Now now," he said, to the glares directed at him, and the slight tensing from Jack and Bunny, "I'm not here to start trouble. I just came to warn you. You really should put more effort into looking into these strange avalanches and ice increases Jack."  
"And why would that be?"  
"Because I don't like other spirits invading my territory. Destroying you and the rest of the guardians is my job. Not the job of some low life amateur..."  
"Mind being more specific?"  
"Not really, No. Anyway, I hear it is a particular someone's birthday?"  
He suddenly appeared before Jamie, but before he could so much as move, Jack's blade was in front of his face.  
"Get away from him."  
"Now now, no need to be rude Jackie-"  
"Don't call me that."  
"Ah yes... the little snowflake..."  
"Shut up Pitch. And leave. Now."  
"Very well. I'm not one to overstay my welcome. To be honest, the magic invading this damned place plays havoc with me... See you around, Jack."

With that, he had vanished, and after a second or two, Bunny nodded.  
"Okay mate, he's gone."  
Jack scowled as he sheathed the sword again, but blinked when he met the awed gazes of the kids.  
"What?"  
Jamie had his mouth wide open and shook his head.  
"Woah, that was so cool..."  
Jack had to laugh.  
"You have a weird idea of cool, Kiddo. Come on, I'll put these away later. Let's head back to the Pole."  
Bunny threw an orb this time, and they all leapt through.  
As the children all gathered round talking about Jack's sheer awesomeness, Jack sidled over to Bunny.  
"D'you reckon he meant what he said? About the ice? It _has_ been getting worse. And Iceman said something about Ice Black a few weeks ago..."  
"Yeah, but he likes to cause trouble."  
"Even to the point of going to the warren? You know he can't set foot in the place for longer than a few minutes before the defenses start to affect him..."  
"We'll look into it. For now, I'd say you just focus on Jamie mate."  
Jack nodded.  
"Alright. You gonna tell the others?"  
"Yeah. I'll let them know when you take the kids home."  
Jack nodded, then laughed when the kids all ganged around him.  
He rolled his eyes playfully as he drew the swords out again, telling them random things about them with Tooth hovering over their heads telling them to be careful.

They were there for about another hour. In that Time, Sophie had to be rescued three times, once by Bunny, once by Jack and once by Tooth, before the piles of balls she dislodged could bury her.  
Jack had to do the same once for cupcake, though she found it more amusing than anything else.  
Eventually, they decided that they should head back before their parents started to worry, and they spent another ten minutes saying goodbye before Jack eventually managed to drive them through the portal.  
It closed behind them and North grinned.  
"Was most fun I have had in some time. Is everything alright Bunny?"  
The Pooka sighed.  
"No. We had a little visit from Pitch..."  
_

Jack grinned as he flew in through Jamie's window, having made sure the others all got home okay after they arrived back.  
Jamie was stashing his various gifts in small places around his room where his mother wouldn't find them and Jack grinned.  
A small vial of dream sand-from Sandy, for when Jamie decided he wanted an extra special dream- a small snow globe, similar to what North and Tooth had given Jack for Christmas, flashing with scenes from his memories with the guardians and his friends, a small basket of some of Bunny's most prized chocolate eggs and the sculpture from Jack... which he put on his bedside table.  
Jack grinned as he realised that meant he would see the small extra touch he had placed on it, with North's help, that night.  
He stayed for another hour, until Jamie finally got tired enough to want to sleep, at which point he gave him a hug, wished him a Happy Birthday and promised to visit soon, before vanishing out the window.

He arrived back at the Pole just as the other guardians were finishing up their discussions about Pitch. They had decided that it would be best to keep an eye on things, but not to the exclusion of everything else.  
Jack had agreed, and as Sandy, Bunny and Tooth vanished to head back to their respective homes and jobs, he decided he may as well stay the night again, and said goodnight to North before heading up to his room.  
As he felt himself drift off, he grinned as a small spark of golden sand appeared in the window, and gave a whispered thanks to Sandy before falling asleep.  
_

Jamie was just about to close his eyes when he caught sight of a faint spark of colour from the ice statue. He blinked, focusing on it, and almost laughed out loud when it started glowing all kinds of colours, reflected from the miniature northern lights that hovered and flickered and danced above the carved figures.  
"Thanks Jack..." he whispered, tiredly, and let the colours help him drift off to sleep...

* * *

**So, What do you think?  
Like it? Hate it? Realising that all the mentions of avalanches and ice are not just coincidence and may have a much more important meaning behind them? Don't worry, all will be revealed... in time.  
I know it was dangerous for Jack to give Jamie a sword, but figured he might be the kind of person to place enough trust and responsibility in him for it. And he seems like the kind of person to indulge the kids :D  
Please review and let me know what you think!**

**Raven xx**

**And in response to the guest reviews: First of all, thanks so much! 150 REVIEWS! GAAAAAHHHHHHHH! (I know, I've done it twice, but I'm HAPPY!)  
Second of all, I'm really glad you're enjoying the fic,  
Third, Power Rangers... O_o Im not even gonna ask, Lol :D  
And fourth, I will definitely be expanding Jack's character more over the rest of the series :D Any ideas for things he could do?**


	20. Going Rambo (aka War in the Warren)

**This time, Bunny starts the prank fight, in an attempt at revenge for the amount of times his warren has been turned into a winter wonderland, and Jack is having to improvise with nothing but his wits and whatever he has handy. North is just letting them get on with it, hoping against hope that Santoff Claussen and the world in general is still standing at the end…**

**Yeah, that's right... Payback! But will it blow back in his face...? (we all know the answer to that, don't we?)**  
**I've also tried a slightly different kind of style here and there, so please review and let me know what you think?**

**Thanks to Whisper119, imaginationhasnolimit, InsanityDerivedBlindLove (for following the story and faving both the story and me) TwilightFairy, Jokeress-KlownQueen and Galaya for the story faves and/or follows :D**

* * *

Bunny was sharpening his carrots.  
Yeah, carrots.  
There were three reasons why he was sharpening carrots.  
One, he wanted revenge on Jack for turning his warren into a winter wonderland god knows how many times.  
Two, carrots weren't very dangerous but would still work fine in his rapid fire blaster.  
And three. They were tasty.  
Bunny gave a satisfied sigh as he sharpened the last one, adding it to the ammunition belt which would slot into the blaster, and slinging it over his shoulder.  
Revenge had been a long time coming, but now it was coming in the form of a giant Pooka with attitude and carrots.  
And it was gonna be sweet…  
Plus he had filled Jack's room at the pole with marshmallows then heated it so they melted everywhere. The carrots were just a little extra.  
He tapped a tunnel and arrived at Santoff Claussen just in time to hear Jack's furious cry of 'BUNNYMUND', and grinned.  
Right on time.  
He shouted, knowing his voice would echo,  
"Revenge Frostbite! And I have more!"  
"Then come get me you oversized, overstuffed, brainless, cotton-tailed, big footed, long eared plushie!"  
Bunny blinked. That had been very impressive… Very impressive and actually rather insulting.  
He approved.  
"Gladly, Frosty… BRING IT ON!"  
It was a call to war, and North, in his study, heaved a sigh.  
This was going to be a long day…

Bunny grinned as he slid to a halt on one side of the main workshop, and Jack flew to a halt on the other.  
It took a matter of seconds for the cry of retreat to come from Phil, who was looking between them with an air of someone who really did not want to be in their way, and they both grinned as the room emptied.  
Bunny slung his blaster from around his shoulder, and slotted the first carrot round into the chamber.  
Jack, on the other hand, having been caught off guard, simply cracked his knuckles and shook himself out, before rolling up his sleeves. This was going to test his improvisational skills to the limit.  
"Heya Bunny. Finally plucked up the nerve to act upon the need for revenge?"  
"Nah. Just got bored and had nothing better to do."  
"... I approve."  
"Glad to hear it. Now, without further ado... EAT CARROT!"  
But Jack had no intention of eating carrot, and immediately started dancing through the air, dodging, ducking behind pillars, flipping and spinning and generally avoiding the missiles.  
Of course, North decided to arrive just as a carrot splattered on the wall next to the door, and wiped the orange mush from his face before crossing his arms.  
"Oi!" They both froze, Bunny about to dive and blast, and Jack half leaning backwards in the air, and looked at him. North bit back a laugh at how comical the scene was, and coughed his way back to seriousness.  
"I have several terrified Yeti's, who are all under the belief that judgement day has arrived. Now, enough of turning my home into a warzone, and go and kill each other somewhere else!"  
It was almost pitiable, the way Bunny's face fell and he started running towards Jack, obviously panicked. Too late.  
Before he could reach him, Jack had opened a tunnel to the warren, grinned at him, and, with a snappy salute, jumped down.  
North gave a low whistle as the hole vanished, and sighed as Bunny vanished through one of his own. Maybe his nuclear bunker might be a good idea for a week or three... Da?

Bunny leapt out of the tunnels, and immediately started looking around for Jack, only to see him grinning, and hovering above him just out of his reach.  
"Yo Kangaroo, you still wanna do this?"  
_No._ "Damn right."  
"Seriously?"  
_No. No, no, NO!_ "Not a doubt in my mind... But it seems you're at a bit of a disadvantage Frostbite?"  
Jack grinned, twirling his staff.  
"Me? Sorry to disappoint you, but all I need are my wits."  
"Oh really?"  
_An idea. A terribly mean, ridiculously harsh, but victory cementing idea._  
"Just your wits?"  
"Yep."  
"Not even... the staff?"  
Jack blinked, mind rushing into overdrive, gauging angles and distances and times and countless other variables... Then he gave a small grin. Why not?  
"Not even the staff."  
The conviction had Bunny wavering for a moment, then he raised an eyebrow.  
"Okay. This time, we'll have some rules. No staff, no boomerangs and no help from eggs or wind. Truce as you head off to do whatever it is that you do with snow and ice and all that..."  
Jack thought it over for all of one second before nodding.  
"It's the middle of September anyway. The fall spirits would be after me with a vengeance if I made it snow too much. But yeah, you got yourself a deal."  
Well, he was pretty much a ninja, after all, right? And it wasn't just with fighting techniques...  
Oh no. If Bunny thought this would be an easy win, he was in for a surprise...  
Bunny grinned, lounging back against a tree as Jack stashed his staff with the rest of the weapons, and grabbed a backpack, stuffing everything he would need into it... And a few things he really wanted.  
Then he grinned at the Giant Pooka and hmm'ed.  
"Look like's this is gonna be one long game of hide-and-seek slash Rabbit-season. Head start then?"  
"Ten minutes before it all gets shot to hell. But let's not go on for longer than... ooh, a week?"  
"Sounds like a plan."  
He gave a snappy salute, before turning and vanishing behind the bank.  
Bunny started counting.

Jack ran for a couple of minutes, before he arrived at a small hidey hole that opened into a tunnel which led to a rather comfortably sized cave. Bunny hadn't used it in years, and he had no idea that Jack knew it was there. It was also quite close to the centre of the warren, and within easy reach of supplies. Yes, he was thinking strategically about this.  
But it was necessary. His entire reputation was at stake, and there was no way that he would let the damned Pooka beat him. So he quickly changed into some combat trousers, a camouflaged t-shirt and a thin, camouflaged jacket.  
All courtesy of Shady, who had decided that now that Jack was a guardian, it gave him reason to visit more often, and to bring more ridiculous gifts. Which were actually pretty useful...  
Then he used hair chalk to dye his hair varying shades of brown, and started sorting his gear out.  
Hmm, it was likely that he would be in the trees a lot, as that was always the best place for a prank... He thought through this and everything else he could think of, before equipping himself.  
A thin, but strong, coil of rope was wrapped around his waist, several times, then he adjusted it so that it wouldn't hamper his movements. Then came a tube of dark green face paint, identical to the shade of the grass in most of the warren, which went into one of the many pockets on the trousers.  
It was shortly followed by a few fold out paper paint bombs-invented by himself- then more of the hair chalk, just in case, then his small knife which he stuck in his belt, a couple of tubs of some of North's strongest glue-because you never know- and lastly a carrot. Just because.  
Then he blinked. He was going up against a Pooka in a prank crusade, and he was doing it combat style? How brilliant was that!  
He quickly wrapped some fabric around his palms and wrists, before slipping on his black, fingerless gloves, and wrapped a piece of black fabric around his forehead.  
If he was doing this, he was going all the way...  
Shame he didn't have a proper weapon though... Ah well...  
"Prepare to get your ass truly and royally whupped, Kangaroo..." he muttered, with a grin, and sidled to the edge of the small space, where it was shielded by a clump of overhanging grass and a few rocks.  
This was going to be a hell of a week...

* * *

**Oh _man_... I've walked right into another long one. I had no idea it was going to go this direction, but let's look on the bright side!  
More ninja Jack, more pranks, some Rambo style stuff and combat kinda stuff going on here too... And we see that Jack doesn't need his staff or his powers to kick ass :D  
So... I'm thinking three, maybe four chapters for this fic... Reckon you can stick with me that long?  
Hope so... :D  
And any ideas you want brought in, just leave them in a review :D  
And I'm really sorry, and I now it's the weekend, but I'm afraid I won't be able to update until at least Monday, possibly Tuesday... I have so much to do it's just... Yeah...**

**Raven xx**

**Guest reviewer- Yay! I feel loved, Lol :D Glad you enjoyed the new accent, and I won't be able to resist having it make a return, so keep your eyes open mate :D**


	21. War in the Warren, Part 2

**Okay, first, to make up for the delay in updates, I will hopefully be updating twice today :D**  
**Im hoping this chapter isn't too crackish or OOC, but you'll have to let me know!**  
**Thanks to himmelblu, verner2, binditheskunk, darktrixy and Lorenza453 for the story faves/follows!  
*hugs* to everyone, and hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

North sighed as he read over the message from Bunnymund.

"_Urgent, For Guardian Eyes only._

_Hey Guys. Me and Jack are in the middle of an all out stealth war in the warren. Please do not be alarmed by various times that we may both be using tunnels to avoid heavy blaster fire, or by the various rumours that might spread about chaos and anarchy. They will most likely be true.  
That is, if this evolves past the stealth/hide-and-seek stage.  
Which it will.  
With regards to Pitch, simply tell him to reconvene his evil and doomed-to-failure plans until a time that is more convenient to us. If that doesn't work, simply toss him into the warren, where Jack will freeze him and I will drop him off in the middle of Antarctica._

_Bunnymund._

_P.S. Interfere at own risk."_

North was considering his options as he sounded the general alarm.  
This was going to be either a very quiet, or very chaotic week.  
_

Jack slowly and silently-using skills he had gained from his various types of training-was shuffling through the bushes, clambering up and leaping from trees to other trees and generally heading for the dye river where Bunnymund was heading.  
He needed to get there first.  
He leapt from a branch, landed with his knees hooked over the next one and swung himself to catch the next branch in line, where he flipped himself up and hastily tied a rope around the tree, before setting one of the oldest traps in the book.  
Then he sat back as Bunny came into view, very cautiously scanning his surroundings.  
He still managed to get his foot caught in the trap, and he only had a chance to look down and sigh before he was hoisted up in the air, and got swung over the river, where Jack immediately sliced at the rope, sending the Pooka in with a splash.  
Jack only stayed long enough to grab what he could salvage from the rope, and throw a paper plan at the face palming Pooka, before leaping down, and using a branch to swing himself into a back-flip, landing on the ground with a crouch and narrowly avoiding a paint grenade before vanishing into the bushes.  
Bunny cursed both himself and Jack as he caught the paper plane and unfolded it.

"_RABBIT SEASON  
Should have never let me watch Looney Tunes. Wil-e-coyote had some awesome ideas... And I can actually make them work._

_Might wanna have a shower!_

_Jack"_

Bunny pulled himself from the river, dye dripping from his fur, and sighed.  
Maybe this would be tougher than he had thought.  
He started to make his way towards the center of the warren, now officially planning on upping things to a whole other level.  
Hmm, and they had only been at it for one afternoon.  
Must be some kind of record...

Jack, leaping from the trees and landing in a crouch, threw himself into a forward roll to absorb the impact, and pushed himself to his feet, running for the weapons room.  
He'd never tell Bunny this, but he had been wanting to train his other skills for years, but had never had the time, chance or space to do so. And it wasn't like he ever had a chance to leave his staff.  
He could feel the wind whipping around him gently, clearly worried for him, but seemingly reassured by the expert-like, yet ridiculous acrobatics Jack was doing without the staff and aid of the wind.  
Jack new that this would mean upping the ante.  
Hence why he quickly grabbed a paint blaster, one of his own adjustable blasters-from where he had stashed a few at the warren just in case, and grabbed his 'ninja outfit' as the fairies had nicknamed it-in anticipation for having to do overnight stealth attacks, and packed them all into a kit bag, throwing it onto his back and racing to the door.  
He cursed as he saw Bunny leap into view, and ducked next to a nearby tree, freezing himself on the spot. The Pooka blinked, scanning the area twice, his eyes even resting on Jack once or twice as he looked around. But he didn't notice him, and Jack heaved a small sigh of relief as the Pooka vanished into his home.  
He waited a couple of minutes, then quietly got to his feet and ran back to the small cave he was using. That had been close… But it was nice to know his knack for blending and camouflage was still intact.

**Later that evening…**

Bunny had a plan.  
A plan which involved a trap which was now fully set.  
He grinned as he took in the web of elastic rope that criss-crossed across the entire clearing.  
With a small cliff face on one side and ridiculously sharp and thick thorn bushes on the other, Jack would have no choice but to run through here.  
It was perfect!  
_

Bunny lay in wait by the small dip.  
He wasn't sure where exactly Jack had managed to hide himself, but he knew it was around this general area. After about half an hour, he was rewarded by said winter spirit leaping down from a tree, and leapt up, throwing an egg bomb.  
Jack, though Bunny had no idea how, managed to dodge the projectile, and retaliated with a mud-ball shot from… was that the same blaster he had been shooting snowballs from in that prank crusade last year?  
Man, the kid was resourceful.  
Bunny ducked the flying wads of mud, and shook himself before taking off after Jack.

Jack slid to a halt as he took in the elastic web and cursed.  
Damn it… That damned Pooka was good…  
He was tempted to just open a tunnel to the other side, but he knew Bunny would be faster.  
He grinned as he gauged angles and distance, before giving Bunny a grin as he burst into the clearing behind him.  
"Get outta this one, Frostbite…"  
"Gladly."  
Jack took a couple of steps run up, then leapt, throwing himself into a front flip.  
He then proceeded to weave his way through the elastic, in a matter of seconds, with a combination of front flips, backflips, cartwheels, forward rolls and general gymnastics.  
He landed just beyond the final rope, and followed the front flip through with a roll before leaping to his feet.  
He went to take a step forward, but realised at the last minute that he hadn't seen the small, really low down wire by his feet.  
He lost his balance, and ended up having to do a handstand, before rolling forward, so that he didn't fall flat on his face.  
He had just got to his feet again, when he realised that Bunny was leaning against a nearby, shaking his head at him at him and juggling a few egg bombs in one paw.  
"Oh man, come on!" Jack sighed, frustrated when he realised he was out of paint bombs, then blinked as Bunny laughed.  
"Ya know, I'll have ta give ya that one, mate. That was pretty damned impressive."  
"Err… Thanks?"  
"And nice job with the camouflage."  
"Thanks again. Does that mean you _don't_ feel like throwing egg bombs at me?"  
Bunny considered, then rolled his eyes.  
"Fine. You're lucky I'm in a good mood."  
Now it was Jack's turn to blink.  
"Say what?"  
Bunny shrugged.  
"What? That was far too impressive to just ignore…"  
Jack blinked, then shrugged.  
"Ah. Okay then. See ya fur-ball!"  
With that, he did a backflip, caught a branch above his head, span over it and vanished from sight.  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
Such an obvious dramatic streak...

Jack yawned slightly as he slid into the small cave, and shrugged off his jacket, rolling it up and stuffing it under his head.  
He'd need all the rest he could get for the following day…  
_

The next day was even more eventful.  
Trip wires triggering bucket-fulls of paint, giant slingshots and mocking notes and jokes pinned to trees- Where the winter spirit would throw something and in the few seconds that Bunny was distracted, dart out and stick it right behind him- were all provided by Jack.  
Wires strung in_ trees_ to trigger buckets of paint, ambushes with paint and egg bombs and a lot of curiosity and paranoia took up Bunny's day.  
Oh, and of course the shoot out that happened at around Lunch...

* * *

**Will continue with the shoot out(as well as a little mention of a surprise visitor/OC that I hope you all enjoy) next chapter :D Which will be uploaded later today to make up for the delay in updates...  
Furball insult inspired by mae2551, Cheers Buddy!  
So, what did you guys think? I know it was short, but the next chapter will hopefully make up for it :D  
Worth the wait? I hope so...  
And any requests for me to cram into the next chapter or two... or three possibly? Pranks... battles... whatever it is, don't hesitate to ask :D**

**Raven xx**


	22. War in the Warren, Part 3

**SHOOT OUT AND THE PIED PIPER!  
(And man, it was a hard push to get this written, as well as the last chapter, today... Anyways, I hope it's worth it!)  
That's all I'm gonna say… Enjoy!**

* * *

Jack dove behind the tree, and rechecked his blaster.  
Damn, he was short of paint bombs...  
He slotted several more into the chamber, and clicked it into place, before peeking around the edge of the tree.  
They had been a this particular round for nearly an hour now, and if it wasn't for the various stashes of ammunition they had lying around, it would have been long over.  
Jack was glad he had had the foresight to lose the jacket.  
His t-shirt was now covered in green and red paint splatters, and their was paint all down his arms, legs and face. That Pooka had damned good aim...  
Bunny wasn't any better off. He was plastered in white and blue paint, and was now, likewise in a defensive position, ducked behind a small bank.  
Jack took in the scene, waiting for the tell tale twitch that said Bunny was just about to move, and leapt out, shooting as he did so, getting rewarded with two clean shots.  
He was too slow to dodge the two shots that hit him, and he span behind another tree, keen to get to his nearest remaining stash of paint bombs to load into his blaster.  
The ones swinging from his belt, around the two belts slung across his chest and the ones already loaded, wouldn't last much longer at their current rate of fire...

Bunny hastily grabbed a new stack of paint bombs, ducking behind a tree to avoid the shots that were fired, and reloaded.  
Damn, the kid was good… And had just scooped up another stash of white paint bombs.  
Brilliant…  
He peered out from behind the tree, and fired a couple of shots.  
Jack retaliated, before clearly taking time to reload.  
Bunny used the time to get to the steep bank, which afforded better cover.  
Yeah, he was thinking about things strategically… What choice did he have?  
And to think he had thought it wouldn't be too difficult to beat the winter spirit without his staff…  
Apparently, Ninja like, combat style manouvres, uncanny aim, gymnastics and acrobatics and a pranking ability honed over god knows how many years combined into a very dangerous force…  
And he was honestly enjoying himself a ridiculous amount.  
Was't often he had as much fun as this, though, if he thought about it, Jack _was_ the guardian of _fun _after all…  
Apparently, he shouldn't have thought that, because the minute moment that it distracted him gave Jack the opportunity to run to the opposite bank, firing, and managing to hit him on the shoulder.  
Bunny quickly ducked down, and rechecked the amount of bombs he had loaded, before grabbing two egg bombs in one hand, the blaster in the other.

Jack grinned as he hit Bunny's shoulder, and dove behind the bank.  
He rechecked his blaster, before peeking over the top, and yelping as he dove out of the way of two egg bombs that had come hurtling towards him.  
He turned the dive into a roll, and shoved himself up as Bunny blasted at him.  
Hmm, that was a pretty good manouvre, Jack thought, grudgingly, in spite of himself.  
The winter spirit ducked behind the trees, and clambered agiley into a comfortable fork in the branches, before lowering himself down to lie on the branch.  
He expertly positioned his blaster to where he knew Bunny was, and grabbed a small fold out glass from one of the multitude of pockets on his trousers.  
He folded it out, and slot it into a catch on the top of the blaster, turning it into a much less deadly version of a sniper rifle...  
Well, he didn't hang around those army bases a few decades ago for no reason, now, did he?  
He grinned as the Pooka broke cover, and his uncanny aim followed the Pooka until he ducked behind a tree.  
Bunny retaliated with some more, actually uncannyily aimed shots, no doubt product of his decent aim and ridiculously good hearing.  
Jack yelped as a shot collided with his sholder, and he lost his balance.  
He quickly grabbed the branch, swinging himself back, and hooking the falling blaster with his foot.  
He flicked it up, catching it, before slinging it on his back and leaping to the floor, swinging from two different branches and landing in a crouch in the middle of a copse of bushes.  
He crouched lower, silently edging towards the edge of the bushes, before he heard a snapping sound to his left, and burst to his feet, holding the blaster up.  
Problem was, Bunny was stood there, likewise pointing the paint blaster at him.

They both raised an eyebrow, and Jack's lips twitched slightly.  
"Ya know, I'm all for calling it a draw?"  
The Pooka considered, then cocked his head, shrugging.  
"I'll go for that. On three?"  
"One..."  
"Two..."  
"Three..."  
They both lowered the blasters, and grinned.  
"Since when were you such a good shot, Kid?"  
"Kid?"  
"Sorry. But considering how old I am, I have a right ta call ya that..."  
Jack considered, then shrugged.  
"Okay, fair point, old timer. And since I first picked up a slingshot."  
"Slingshot?"  
"... I dislike guns."  
"Ah... Any reason?"  
Jack frowned, his eyes taking on the faraway look they all knew meant he was in a memory.  
"Let's just say that... wars are not nice places to be..."  
Bunnymund blinked, then shook his head.  
"Sorry Frostbite..."  
"Meh, times change... And don't start with the guilt or touchy feely stuff. I really don't want to hear it."  
Bunny sighed, realising that whereas North or Tooth might have pressed, him, the reason Jack was able to get along so well with him was probably because he didn't keep pressing him.  
Then he blinked, and grinned, pulling a bag from the pouch on his belt.  
"Oi! Catch..."  
Jack caught the small bag, and raised an eyebrow as he opened it.  
"When did you steal North's favourite cookies?"  
"This morning. Got one of my messenger eggs to do it."  
"Ah... Cheers."  
"No Problem. Ya know it's nearly five right?"  
"Really? My, how time flies when you're having fun..."  
"You'd know. Wanna call it a day?"  
"Hmm... Actually, yeah, sure. But Im up bright and early..."  
"Warning heeded. Ya gonna attempt some stylish, dramatic exit?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Ya really have t ask?"  
A backflip, and he'd vanished into the copse of bushes.  
Bunny sighed.  
"Stupid question really..." he sighed to himself, and tapped a tunnel, back to his home.  
Their youngest guardian really did know how to tire someone out...

Jack stifled a yawn, as he made a diversion.  
He had something to do before he got a few hours sleep.  
It took him nearly an hour, and he grinned as he finally settled down, after stashing away the semi-permanent black paint. He was honestly having the most fun he'd had in ages.  
They really had to do this more often...  
_

**The Following Morning...**

Jack was grinning as he sat, perched in the trees, and watched Bunny's shocked reaction to finding that his egg golems all had mustaches beards and random hairstyles painted in black paint.  
"Frostbite! I swear when I get my hands on you..."  
Bunny called, scowling, then grinned.  
"Ya wanna make this more interesting?"  
Jack grinned, having been anticipating the question, and sent a small note, wrapped around an arrow, flying towards Bunny, from the bow he had snatched from the weapons room.  
It slammed into the tree, next to the Pooka, and Bunny read it.

_Thought you might say that. I get to use snow-though I may just not bother- and you get to use your little egg army?_

Buny grinned.  
"Ya really do plan for everything, don't ya Frostbite? Ya're gonna have ta teach me how ya do that... And yeah, sounds good."  
Another note.

_Thought you might say that too... This is gonna be fun._

Bunny grinned again.  
"Ya know ya're gonna have to get past me to gat ya staff?"  
Yet another pre-written note.

_Way ahead of you. Bring it plushie..._

"Oh, I intend to, Frostbite..."  
Bunny whistled, and Jack frowned as he realised that the Pooka was using a variety of sounds at a particular scale of pitch...  
Then he grinned, recalling a few tips he'd picked up from another spirit he had met once.  
And to think that he had thought that the lessons, that the Pied Piper had given him, would never come in useful...  
He swiftly made his way to the weapons room, but grimaced as he realised that there were a whole squadron of eggs already in place.  
He decided to improvise.  
Swinging down, he crept around the edges of the crowd of eggs and sneaked into a nearby shed, grabbing a bamboo staff.  
Calling on the skills Piper had taught him, he grabbed his knife and whittled away at it, grinning.  
This had to be the most creative way of distracting an army of eggs that he had ever heard of...  
And the fact that he would be able to get one over on a huge rabbit?  
That was just a huge bonus.  
He really had to thank Piper for this... If it worked that is.

* * *

**And all will be continued and concluded next chapter, though I have no idea how long it will be...  
(Though if you guys want to give me anymore ideas, I can definitely extend it to another chapter, but I'm afraid we won't be meeting Piper for a while, though if you want to meet him, I'm sure I can slip him in :D Depends on the feedback I get...)**

**Anyway, hope you all enjoyed? The shoot-out? The little glimpse of Jack's past? The mustache etc prank? The mention of the Pied Piper?  
Please review and let me know!**

**Raven xx**


	23. War in the Warren, The Finale

**Thanks to EmeraldGrey57, MorikoKitsune, Effugere, zombiekillingtigress and StellaCartoonlover for the faves/follows since the last chapter!  
And thanks to everyone who reviewed!  
Hope you enjoy the finale!**

* * *

Jack grinned, shuffling to get more comfortable, and began blowing on the hastily crafted bamboo flute. A certain pitch, thanks to his nimble fingers, had the eggs listening in.  
A few moments later, they were all distracted enough for Jack to creep around behind them.  
Still playing the tune, he quickly snatched his staff and backed away, back to the trees, before taking the flute from his lips.  
The effect was instantaneous. The eggs immediately started panicking, realising that the staff was missing, and several ran off, clearly to find Bunny.  
Jack grinned as he left a small layer of snow on the ground, just to make a point, before he took off.  
He wasn't really planning on using the staff, or his powers, but the eggs made things more of a challenge…  
Then he glanced at the flute, which he had stashed in one of his pockets, and grinned.  
Or maybe not so much of a challenge.  
_

Later that day, at around one in the afternoon, Bunny was still wondering how the hell the winter spirit had crept past his eggs.  
He had, at first, wondered why Jack had not yet used any snow, before he realised that he was probably wanting to make things more challenging for himself. He couldn't have had much in the way of proper training opportunities before, after all.  
Which had made Bunny smile.  
The kid wanted a challenge? He would get one.  
The day was nearly as eventful as the previous one.  
Another paint blaster battle, this time with him cheating and using a hose, which actually caught the winter spirit straight in mid-leap (not that it stopped him from making a very smooth, improvised landing and returning fire with uncanny precision) lasted for just over an hour, where it morphed to Jack using snowballs as Bunny used Egg bombs, which was perfectly fair in his opinion, considering that the younger guardian wasn't even using the wind to help him.  
Then it evolved to another game.  
Namely capture the flag…

The first round went to Jack.  
Bunny left the flag to the protection of the eggs, and decided to go on the offensive.  
Jack simply lulled the eggs to sleep, then crept in, grabbed the flag and made a tunnel back to his own base, planting the flag down just as Bunny got there.  
Of course, then the game had to get more difficult…

Bunny, now determined not to lose the second of the three rounds, paced for a few moments, in front of his flag, and got an idea.  
It was based on the hunch that Jack would have to be around to be able to affect the eggs the way he had been, but he was pretty sure it would work.  
He ordered the eggs to march on the winter spirits flag base, and followed along, keeping himself hidden. He grinned as he caught sight of Jack, clearly bothered by the eggs and distracted, and ran to the flag, sighing as he noticed the huge mound of snow it was placed on.  
He sighed, starting to clamber to the top.  
He eventually grabbed the flag, then grinned as he saw a perfect smooth bank of snow down the one side of the mound.  
Looks like the kid had a sense of humour…  
He leapt down, rolling as he reached the bottom of the snow slide, and tunnelled to his own base, stabbing the flag into the ground.  
Jack appeared a few moments later, rolling his eyes and giving him a grudging grin.  
"Alright, I'll give you that. Very smooth."  
"Why, Thanks Frostbite. Coming from you, that really means a lot."  
"Sarcasm?"  
"Hmm… Yes and no."  
Jack blinked, then shrugged.  
"If ya say so. Best of three then?"  
Bunny grinned.  
"You got it."

They still had no idea how, but the last round ended in a tie.  
Apparently, they were on an equal footing with sneaking around, setting booby traps and bombarding each other with paint and what-not.  
They had each grabbed the others flag at the exact same time, and, according to the egg golems that had been refereeing, they had planted the flag down at the exact same time as well.  
Bunny sighed. He wasn't sure his nerves could take another round…  
Then he grinned.  
He wasn't sure Jacks short supply of patience could be bothered with another round either…  
Sure enough, the next time he saw Jack, he'd propped his staff against a tree, and was leaning against the same truck, grinning, with his arms crossed.  
"Wanna call it a tie?"  
Bunny grinned.  
"I was thinking the exact same thing."  
"Well, first time for everything… Anyway. figured out how I managed to control your eggs yet?"  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Nope. But ya already knew that. Feel like telling me?"  
Jack considered, then shook his head, twirling a small piece of bamboo between his fingers like a baton.  
"Nope."  
"Very well. Then I guess you'll just have to show me."  
"And why is that?"  
Bunny grinned.  
"Attack!"  
In a matter of moments, eggs came rushing from the bushes, and Jack blinked in surprise, before leaping to grab a branch and haul himself up.

Then he realised that the eggs were starting to build a tower to get to him, and glared at the Pooka.  
"Alright, very smooth."  
Bunny grinned.  
"Thanks. Get out of this one then, Frostbite."  
The winter spirit grinned, then brought the small piece of bamboo to his lips.  
Bunny blinked.  
Oh, come on… There was no way that Jack was capable of… Okay, apparently there was.  
A small tune started, at a very familiar pitch, and Bunny had to smile.  
Their youngest guardian was actually a bloody genius.  
The eggs immediately started looking unfocused, and Jack leapt to the floor, careful not to step on any of them, and made his way to the other end of the field-full of eggs.  
Then he grinned, stopping the music for a moment.  
"Before you ask, I met the Piper a century or so ago, he taught me the flute, and I'm pretty good with woodwork, meaning it really is not hard to whittle away at a piece of bamboo."  
He started playing it again, as the eggs got their focus back, sending them back into a daze, and Bunny simply shook his head.  
"Ya are really something, Frostbite. Wait till the others hear about this one."  
Apparently, they wouldn't have to wait long to tell them, as a very familiar fairy flew into the clearing.

Jack raised an eyebrow, staching the flute in a pocket as Bunny ordered the eggs to stand down.  
"Hey BT, ya know this is a warzone right?"  
She chirped something, and Jack frowned.  
"She says the others want to speak to us at the pole…" he sighed, "Feel like taking a quick break?"  
The Pooka nodded.  
"Ya know this'll only be because they'll want to tell us that three days is more than enough time to spend on trying to prove who's the best or whatever else they think this is about…"  
Jack grinned.  
"Yup… But on the bright side, if it is, then we can… Correct them."  
The Pooka grinned.  
"I like your thinking. Meet ya there?"  
Jack nodded, grabbing his staff as Bunny leapt into a tunnel, and tapped one of his own.  
_

Jack blinked as he leapt into a room bristling with fairies.  
He blinked again as they all looked at him, gasped, and promptly fainted.  
The he looked at what he was wearing with a sigh.  
He was still dressed like Rambo, brown hair, face paint and everything. That might explain it…  
He quickly lay them all on the couch, before heading through into North's study.  
They all, aside from Bunny, who was scowling, stared at him, clearly taken aback by his outfit, and he rolled his eyes.  
"Hey, when I say war, I mean it literally… What's up?"  
Bunny sighed,  
"I was right, this was about telling us to act our ages…"  
Jack cocked his head.  
"Physically or mentally? Either way, I'm kinda still a child, so that really isn't the best turn of phrase to use."  
Bunny grinned at that, and gave him a high five at the blinks the other guardians gave.  
"Nice one, Frostbite."  
"I thought so…"  
North cleared his throat, for their attention.  
"You both are aware of my meaning. This has gone on for long time, and must be stopped before it gets out of hand."  
Jack and Bunny shared a look, then turned to North.  
"By out of hand…"  
"Bah! It does not matter." North said, waving his hands in the air, "Maybe is time to stop trying to get one over on the other, as I believe the phrase is, Da?"  
Bunny looked about to complain, but a quick, sharp look from Jack stopped him.  
The winter spirit nodded.  
"They got a point Bunny, if we continue fighting between ourselves, It'll only end in a tie break anyway."  
Bunny raised an eyebrow.  
"You wanna call it a tie?"  
"What? We're pretty evenly matched in terms of… well, everything."  
"Was that a compliment, Frostbite?"  
"Nope. Just an admission that you're methods rival even my own... Anyway, North is right. We really should stop fighting between _ourselves_."  
Bunny caught on a moment later, and hid his smirk with a contrite look.  
"Ya're right, Snow cone-"  
"Snow cone?"  
"I thought it was quick?"  
"It was… Just don't use it. It's the kinda thing I'd expect Tooth to say, for some reason, but not you..."  
The Pooka sighed.  
"Fine." Then he grinned again. "But ya're right."  
North and Tooth shared a look, as Sandy surreptitiously created a helmet out of golden sand and floated behind the desk, where cover was easily accessible.  
He sighed quickly to Jack.  
_How bad is it going to get?_  
Jack grinned as he signed back.  
_Not too bad… Just bad enough to make a point._

Ten minutes later, Sandy had made his excuses and left, Tooth was being run ragged with the fairies who kept complaining that she had insisted Jack get changed into his usual outfit, and North was fretting over the fact that, not only had the two erstwhile rivals been in total agreement, but they had vanished a few minutes before with huge smirks.  
This was not going to end well…  
_

In fact, it wasn't until the following morning that they figured out what the other two had been planning.  
North- Tooth having left to head back to the palace- followed Sandy outside to see what he had seen that was so urgent and, apparently, funny, and gasped as he caught sight of the huge wall that stretched almost the entire length of Santoff Claussen.  
Which was now covered in… Graffiti!  
From decent pictures of Easter Eggs smashing presents and chasing elves, to phrases such as 'Easter trumps Chrissie'. The two of them must have been at it all night…  
But whilst a small part of him had to appreciate-he really had no choice in the matter- the artistry of the work, the vast majority of him was plotting vengeance. Sandy was quick to snap a picture of his face, and North glared at him.  
"Is not nice, Sandy."  
The golden guardian shrugged, grinning, and North sighed, unable to hide his own smile.  
"Very well. I would probably do same thing. Now where is... Ah, Phil!"  
An hour later, dozens of yeti's were attempting to clean the wall, having to go over every inch of the wall a dozen times to get rid of the stubborn spray-paint, and North was re-evaluating his idea to get the Pooka back. (Both because he was sure that the images had been the Pooka's idea, and you would have to be insane-or April Fool- to try and get Jack back…)  
Because really, when Bunny had the guardian of fun behind him, what could you do?

In the warren, Jack was grinning as they laid out he pictures they had took into a full scale remodel of it, across one of the tunnel entrances.  
Bunny had thought it was just far too good to waste, and Jack had agreed.  
His idea of graffiti, paired with paying Shady to get a load of cans of spray paint, and Bunny's ideas of what would irritate North the most, combined with his and Bunny's skills with paints and art and what-not, had come together into a formidable weapon…  
And it was one they were both planning on using again in future…  
Because it really was too good to waste, and, Bunny added, in his mind, when they were working together, there was less chance of his warren turning into a war zone.  
Not that he was complaining. Though he may have to talk with North about making some sort of training room for Jack… Then he grinned.  
That wasn't actually such a bad idea…

* * *

**First of all… OVER 200 REVIEWS! OH MY GOD, YOU ARE FAR TOO AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU ALL AND HUGS AND COOKIES YO EVERYONE!  
And to my 200****th**** reviewer, who happened to be a guest, That's perfectly fine :D (If you want to let me know who you are if you review again, I'll be able to say thank you properly :D )  
I know I've said it before, but I was honestly not expecting this kind of response to this, which makes this amount of support and attention even more important to me :D  
You guys have no idea how grateful I am to all of you!**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and the grand finale, (though I know it wasn't my best chapter ever) and please let me know if you either want to meet the Piper and/or if you want to see Bunny and Jack team up again… (Ideas for this would be welcome too! )  
As for the mention of a training room, I am planning on having something like that, in a later chapter, so thoughts?  
Aside from that, thanks again for the support guys, it's really appreciated!**

**Till next time then :D  
Raven xx**


	24. Jack of the Opera, The Full Story

**So, Long awaited apparently, and more than a little fun to write. Hope you all enjoy the little flashes into Jack's past... Even if they aren't actually flashbacks. I figured I'd let Jack have a go at actually explaining things for himself.  
This is quite a short one, but hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Tooth sighed as she watched the Phantom, in the film version of Phantom of the Opera, glide out and start to sing.  
She loved this film... And it was always her go to film when she had a few hours break.  
Jack, of course, chose this moment to poke his head around the door, and grinned, creeping up behind Tooth.  
"The Phaaantom of the ooooperaaaaaaa..."  
She jumped, and Jack ducked the half hearted swipe aimed at his head, before he yelped as she threw her hand across his mouth.  
"Shh! I like this film."  
Jack rolled his eyes, peeling her fingers away.  
"Oh please, it's so inaccurate!"  
"How would you know?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Didn't North tell you? I _was _the Phantom of the Opera..."  
Tooth blinked, and paused the film- a testament to her shock.  
"You're joking right?"  
In response, he swept into an old opera song-that legend has it was sang by the Phantom, and the haunting notes and melody had Tooth shivering.  
"Wow... But how did that happen?"  
Jack sighed.  
"Okay, first, I got bored and had just fully started to enjoy singing. Second, I really did not like the look of this guy that was running an Opera show, and three... The romance aspect of it? Complete rubbish. I have to say though, the fact that I managed to drive old Miser,-ya know, the spirit of miser...ness and general '_find problems to complain about'_ness?-Out of the place was helpful.  
I mean, he used to do anything and everything to interrupt shows. Drop sand bags, weights, barrels, curtains... It got to the point where I decided to just tell him to leave."  
"He left?"

Tooth was now intrigued, and Jack sighed as he jumped over the back of the sofa and settled back.  
"Yep. Then I spent a few years 'haunting' the place with music, before I left. It was one of the most fun decades I've ever had. Oh, and I discovered a stash of money that Miser had been taking from the owners of the place, in return for not ruining their shows, and they had already left by the time I found it. No chance of returning it."  
"You kept it?"  
"Most of it. Enough for what I needed. There was a ridiculous amount by the standards in those times. Over the years, I anonymously gave it to families I saw in trouble or who had children and were in need of food. Also had a little run in with this guy called Scrooge about a century ago, on Christmas eve. I convinced him to stop being a money miser. It worked surprisingly well. Got a hand from another spirit I know, to help with the illusions, and he was a changed man by morning. Again though, the films and books completely changed how it actually happened."  
"You mean... you were the inspiration behind A Christmas Carol? That's almost as popular as the legend of Santa Clause!"  
Jack grinned, shrugging.  
"Yup. But keep it quiet. Hardly anyone knows it's me, and I'd rather keep it that way."  
Tooth looked confused as to why, but nodded.  
"Sure thing. So, Phantom of the Opera? A Christmas Carol? Anything else?"  
Jack thought for a few seconds, and settled back, making himself more comfortable.  
"Well, the old guy whose attitude I changed? I visited him again before he died. I don't think he believed in me, but all the same, he had left a note on the side if the table. It said something along the lines of 'if the friendly spirit should find this, use the money in the safe to help those in need...' Sure enough, the money I found allowed me to help so may over the next couple of decades. After that though, everything kinda took a course for the better, and I held off a little. I recently used an online service to change the money values of the various stashes I had left, and turns out that they are actually worth quite a lot at today's value."

Tooth shook her head, amazed.  
"You're telling me that you have spent the last three hundred odd years helping out everywhere possible, and there are spirits who still hate you?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"I never really let it be known that it was me. Only Charity, ya know the spirit of Charity and giving? And the few who have really known me over the years actually know. And now you."  
"And you'll want me to keep it quiet?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Yeah... I dunno why. I just don't like the thought of change after all these years."  
Tooth sighed, before nodding.  
"Alright. But hang on, if you have the money, why never buy yourself new clothes?"  
"Well, I can't really waltz into a department store, can I? I know that most spirits have believers to help them over the years, but I didn't. I had to get along without it. I mean, Shady helped sometimes. But most of the spirits never really wanted to go near me, and yeah. I wasn't going to be the one to force myself on them."  
Tooth sighed, a far too familiar wash of guilt and sorrow filling her. Jack, however, seemed to realise this and rolled his eyes.  
"Hey, I'm fine! Why bother dwelling on the past when I have so much in the present?"

Tooth had to smile at that. So many people thought they knew Jack Frost. Thought they knew him to be a cold loner, with nothing but a slight tendency to aggression and anger.  
Even the guardians had only added fun, carefree, patient, helpful, friendly and mischievous to that image. But now Tooth new better.  
She mentally added selfless, humble, charitable, optimistic, forgiving and gentle into the equation.  
Jack, now slightly concerned with her silence, leaned over and waved a hand in front of her face.  
"Hello? Ya still with me?"  
"Hmm? Oh, sorry Jack. Just thinking. Hey, seeing as you have now ruined one of my favourite movies, what do you say you pick another one?"  
He grinned apologetically, and scanned the shelves that lined the walls.  
Hmm... He flew over and started flicking through the titles.  
"Interview with a Vampire? More like interview with a 'subconscious mind provided by a mischievous spirit'... The Rocky Horror Picture Show- Really Tooth?"  
She shrugged.  
"The humans and their vivid imaginations amuse me."  
"Fair enough... Hmm, Wind in the Willows? Full of inaccuracy and political metaphors... Wizard of Oz? That was a fun weekend, let me tell you. More like fairy land images subconsciously filtered into Baum's head before he wrote the book. Me and Sandy had loads of fun with that one."  
Tooth grinned as she listened to Jack going on about various films and the storied behind them. He was either involved, or knew about how they came about, and she eventually stopped him.  
"Jack? How do you know so much about this?"  
"Being invisible, and ignored by most spirits, has a lot of advantages. For example, I overhear things. For example, did you ever hear how Cupid accidentally shot Winston Churchill and his cat?"  
"He had a cat?"  
Jack shuddered.  
"You don't wanna know... Trust me. I have a whole bank full of secrets and other titbits up here-" he tapped his head, and grinned. "And if certain people ever found out how much I knew? Let's just say it would not go down well."  
Tooth laughed, and Jack finally found a film.  
"Ah, the Three Musketeers! Now _that_ is a decent film!"  
"Do I want to know?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Probably not. I was rather drunk ya see... I was bored and wanted to see what affect alcohol had on me and-"  
"You're right. I don't want to know."

* * *

**The whole Money thing was in response to a request for me to try and explain how the spirits get material goods. I know this is only with regards to Jack, but I'm hoping to bring more into it in future fics...  
I actually had fun writing this chapter, and I hope you all had fun reading it?  
Please review and let me know :D And to share your ideas on how the spirits could buy shizzle...  
****(Maybe the elves from the elves and the shoemaker, and other various little creatures are not so unreal after all? I dunno...)**

**Hope you all enjoyed, and that it was up to what you expected (for those of you who have requested this fic and the whole Jack of the Opera Thing)  
Till next time then guys *hugs***

**Raven xx**


	25. May I Have This Dance?

**Okay, this chapter is starting as something nice and sweet, but knowing me, by the end of it there will be some sort of disaster and Santoff Claussen will have been blown up... *sigh*  
Thanks to TheAwesomeQoiFish, love-serenades, Kiyomi-Uchiha17, primkiwimon, PippaFrost, gisir9898 and dogluvva99 for the faves/follows!  
Enjoy!**

* * *

Tooth sighed as she heard Strausse playing over the small radio.  
She loved the waltz... Heck, she loved dancing in general, but especially the waltz. Only problem was, she had no proper dance partners. North had no idea, Bunny just couldn't and Sandman? He had never had the time to learn. And of the friends she had in the spirit world, only one or two ever actually had enough time to dance with her on occasion.  
It was always something that made her slightly melancholy.  
North popped his head around the door and smiled.  
"Ah, Tooth. What brings you to Pole?"  
She shrugged, smiling.  
"Nothing much. Just had a quiet few days and wanted to visit. How are you?"  
"I am good. Right on track for Christmas. You are wanting to dance, yes?"  
Tooth blinked, surprised, and smiled.  
"Is it that obvious?"  
"Indeed. You always get far away look in eyes when you do want to dance. I am just wishing I could do so."  
"Nah, I'm fine North. Is Jack around?"  
It was just then that the spirit poked his head around the door, with a grin.  
"Jack is always around..." he said, making it sound eerie in an old Transylvanian accent, and Tooth and North both laughed. Then Jack grinned as he heard the music.  
"Strausse? You can't hear this song and not want to dance."  
Tooth perked up.  
"You dance?"  
Jack shrugged, considering.  
"Waltz, Tango, quickstep... you name it, I've tried it."  
"The Waltz?"  
Tooth was practically jumping with joy, which was quite hard to do seeing as she was in the air, and Jack blinked, before grinning, propping his staff against the wall.  
"Yep." His voice morphed to the very epitome of a gentleman, "Would you care to dance, fair Princess?"

He gave an elaborate bow, which could have come straight from a ball room, and held out his hand, giving her a wink.  
She pretty much gasped in delight, and laughed.  
"Gladly." She said, taking his hand, and North watched, not at all surprised by the fact that Jack could dance-indeed, it would take something truly spectacular to surprise any of them anymore- as they span around the room.  
Soon, the song changed to something much more lively, and Jack grinned as he spun Tooth around, both of them automatically changing to the quickstep, then came the Tango, then Jack had Tooth laughing and attempting to follow a complicated Hand Jive.  
North quietly made his way back to his workshop, grinning from ear to ear that his friends were having such a good time, and wondering just how many more secret abilities the guardian of fun actually had.  
Jack and Tooth laughed about for a couple of hours, until Baby Tooth finally distracted them-right in the middle of an old French take on the traditional waltz- and chirped about some kind of spirit that wanted to see Tooth.  
Jack, having nothing else to do, agreed to tag along, and quickly let North know where he was going before they all flew off.  
Jack couldn't help thinking about that as they flew. When had it become so instinctual to let the others know when he was leaving, or where he was going? He hadn't even realised he was doing it until recently...  
He spent the rest of the trip amusing Baby Tooth and Tooth by doing a mini version of the waltz with Baby Tooth, using his fingers as arms and legs.  
The two were in hysterics as they reached the palace, Jack having been trying to use his fingers to do the quickstep and failing, and Jack was also laughing as they landed. He was just about to fly off when he started getting a strange sense of foreboding. That, combined with the wind nudging him towards Tooth's study, had him catching up to the fairy and earning himself a confused look, which he shrugged to, before they entered.

Jack floated up to the rafters before the spirit waiting there span around.  
Jack blinked as he recognised him as a spring spirit he had seen a few times. The meetings had never really gone well.  
Tooth looked likewise surprised to see him, and gestured for him to sit down.  
"Haze. What brings you here? Is everything okay?"  
Haze shook his head.  
"No, I'm afraid not. Not three hours ago, a landslide of Ice on the mountains near our home buried half of the burrows. We were wondering if your new guardian, Jack Frost had heard anything of it? He's always around where there is trouble."  
Tooth bristled at that.  
"Yes, because he tries to help with it." Then she gave a thin lipped smile. "Anyway, have you heard anything Jack?"  
Jack floated down to the ground, and leant against one of the pillars in the room, arms crossed and considering.  
"Can't say that I have, Tooth. I've noticed an increase in avalanches and the amounts of ice over the last couple of winters, especially this year, but nothing of the landslide-"  
"Oh, because that's likely." The spring spirit stormed, "Wherever there is trouble with snow and ice and god knows what else, you're more often than not behind it!"  
Tooth glared at him.  
"You have no proof of that."  
"He's a 300 year old spirit who can ride the wind, control the snow and has the mentality of a ten year old human child!"  
Jack blinked, taken aback, as Tooth pinned the spirit up against the wall, and glared at him.  
"You will apologise. How dare you come into my home, then accuse my friends of something they could not possibly have done!"  
"How do you know they didn't do it, Pixie?"  
Tooth grimaced at the insult, and Jack took her arm, pulling her away before turning to the spirit and fixing him with an icy glare that froze him to the spot.  
"How dare you. How dare you come into her home and insult her! This is over the line even for you! As for how she knows, I have been with her for the last three or four hours, and have heard nothing of this landslide. As for the increase in other ice problems, I am already looking into it. Now I suggest you apologise to Toothiana, before getting your sorry, shoot sprouting ass out of this palace and let someone who actually has any idea of what is going on handle things. Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?"  
Haze nodded, and Jack backed away, the glacier look still in his eyes.  
The spring spirit turned to Tooth, and nodded his head.  
"My behaviour was out of line. I offer my sincerest apologies your highness. Good luck with your investigations."  
With that, he gave a small bow and left.

Tooth turned to Jack, and flinched slightly at the look he was directing at the doorway the spirit had just left through, but when he turned back to her, all traces of the anger had gone, to be replaced with his usual mischievous twinkle, though there was an undercurrent of guilt and concern in there too.  
Tooth shook her head.  
"Jack, I've never seen you look like that before. You okay Sweet Tooth?"  
He gave a small shrug, looking uncertain.  
"There is a reason no-one wants to go near me when I'm in a bad mood. Sorry Tooth. I didn't want you to have to see that... He just... I just didn't like that he insulted you."  
Tooth shook her head, smiling lightly.  
"It's okay. What's all this about an increase in avalanches?"  
Jack ran a hand through his hair with a sigh.  
"Over the last few years, there has been a steady increase in the ice levels... It played havoc with the structure of the snow on the mountains. I've spent a lot more time than normal keeping an eye on things on the mountain ranges. The last year though, I've never seen ice levels like it... I don't know what, or who, is causing it, but after what Haze just said about the landslide, I'm gonna have to spend more time looking into it... It seems Pitch's warning a few weeks ago actually had something behind it."  
He had started pacing, and Tooth sighed.  
"Okay, why don't you tell North, and he can see if any of the yeti's have heard anything strange on the mountains? Phil's family live in the Himalayas I think... I'm sure they could ask around?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Okay, thanks Tooth. I'd better get going... Hold a rain check on that next dance I promised you!"  
He gave her a quick hug, which she returned whole-heartedly, before flying out.  
Baby Tooth, from where she had been hovering, unseen, behind a pillar, flew over and chirped.  
Tooth nodded.  
"Yeah... seems our guardian of fun has a serious side."  
Then she smiled.  
"Ah well, come on BT, let's go see what the others have been up to..."  
_

Jack arrived back at Santoff Claussen just over half an hour later, having taken the higher and much faster stream of the north wind-which had eagerly carried him to the Pole- and immediately set off to find North.  
It was less than an hour later that he had sent Phil to see his relatives, as well as sending some of the other Yeti's off to various mountain ranges with orbs, and was looking at Jack, concerned with the slight distanced look in his eyes.  
"Is there problem Jack?"  
The winter spirit froze, before sighing.  
"Not really. Just that... when I had a go at Haze, I noticed Tooth flinching. I mean, I don't blame her. The things I've done when I've been angry and-"  
North shook his head.  
"Jack, I'm sure it was just surprise. We have all heard of the legendary glacier eyes of Jack Frost, da? We just have not seen that side of you."  
He said it in a jovial tine, and Jack gave a small smile.  
"Yeah, I know. I just hate it when I feel the anger. It's like a spreading cold... I even scared myself the first time I saw my eyes in a reflection when I was like it. It's actually one of the reasons I took up meditation."  
North blinked.  
"You meditate?"  
"Did. And wait, that's what you took from that?" He looked incredulous, and North sighed.  
"Jack, we all have sides that we do not wish seen. But we are your friends. Your family. And correct me if I am mistaken, but I do not believe Father's allow their sons to wallow in something that is a part of them."  
Jack blinked. Then he smiled.  
"Father and son, eh?"  
North gave a rumbling laugh.  
"I would not have it any other way."  
He pulled Jack, yelping and wriggling, into a full armed hug, which left him gasping.  
It took a few minutes for his breathing to return to normal, at which point North laughed as he patted him on the back.  
"And besides. The next time we face trouble, it is nice to know we will be having the warrior of winter alongside us, eh?"  
"You err... you know that name?"  
"I have heard it. That and more. The most recent one, I believe, is the Ice Prince."  
Jack face palmed.  
"Iceman, I'm going to kill you..." he muttered, and North laughed.  
"I am assuming it is old Joke, da? Ah well. We have much time before Yeti's return. What was this idea you had about new train design for toys?"  
Jack grinned, deciding to let the huge guardian ditract him.  
"Come on, a train track based on the workshop would be awesome! Mini yeti's and everything!"  
As they argued about the importance of not letting people know that giant apes were the ones who made toys at the pole, as opposed to small, irritating and jingly elves, Jack soon forgot his earlier worries and North smiled to himself.  
_

In a cave, a 25 year old looking, over 500 year old spirit with white hair, shot through with streaks of black, and wearing black jeans, black trainers and a black leather jacket, with a stark white t-shirt, grinned as he sent a trail of ice up the side of a mountain, creating a build up of pressure and causing the side of the rock to crack slightly.  
The resulting avalanche swept towards the small fey village at the base of the mountain and he smiled.  
"Jack be nimble, Jack be quick..." he muttered, "I'm gonna get hold of Jack Frost's stick..."  
He paused, then smiled ruefully at the verse. It was one of the worst yet.  
But he would get Jack's staff... The brat new nothing of the power he had. The power that should be his! Pitch Black would be nothing compared to him...  
Nothing at all...  
Ice Black smiled. He just needed the staff. Without it, Jack was nothing...  
And he had a plan to get it...

* * *

**Ooh, that's right, Ice Black is now on the scene! And he will return... Of course :D As will Iceman and Shady and Clover and maybe a few others I've either mentioned or used in chapters before...  
Will Jack defeat this latest threat? Well, we'll see in a few chapters time, when all is revealed and more...  
(Wait, does that make any sense?) *Smiles disarmingly and attempts to use the force... **_**this is all making total sense to you all and Raven is not insane...* **_**Did it work? Nope? Darn it...**

**Please review and let me know what you think of the chapter!  
And how it morphed from something innocent and fun to something that even I don't understand... (At least Santoff Claussen is still standing!) I honestly don't know how it started to travel this direction, but hopefully it'll add something good to the fics :D**

**Till next time then, Raven xx**

**(oh, and as for the pixie insult? I was kinda short on time... so yeah. Not quite sure why it's insulting, but meh, eh?)**


	26. Letting It Out

**Okay, first of all, Ice Black will not be coming into this chapter... In fact, He will actually be coming in a couple more times before we really hit the Ice Black arc of the fic...  
(The Ice Black Arc... cue jaws theme tune or some other dun dun duuuunnnnn/foreshadowing of evil events kind of music and you really have a creepy, dramatic title, eh?)**

**But this chapter is in response to some of you guys wanting to have a training room, as I mentioned in a recent chapter, and to wanting the fic to be more realistic in terms of Jack actually having weaknesses... (Hope I managed it without the characters going too OOC, but you will have to let me know?)  
Oh, and thanks to rats xp for the fave and follow, and xXNeverEndingDreamXx for the follow!**  
**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Bunny blinked as he took in the huge room, in the old wing of Santoff Claussen, before turning to North.  
"I only suggested this a coupl'a weeks ago... How d'ya get it done so fast, mate?"  
North grinned, crossing his arms in satisfaction.  
"You have eggs, I have yeti's. Is what you expected, da?"  
Bunny nodded, taking in the training room.  
Various climbing surfaces, including a rock wall, racks to hold various weapons, a sparring ring, gymnastics equipment, punching bags, sports equiptment, from skipping ropes to running machines... It had it all.  
"Nah mate, it's better than I expected. But then, when ain't it, eh? Looks like it takes up half the wing...?"  
North shrugged.  
"Have not used area in may decades. No point in going to waste, da?"  
"Damn straight... Ya do know that yer gonna have a hard job prying Frostbite away from the... well, everything, right?"  
"Somehow, I think he will be just as distracted as recently. I fear Ice Black is becoming big problem..."  
"Yeah... well then, I guess it's our job to distract him here and there, right mate?"  
"Wrong. Christmas is very close, so distracting Jack is your job."  
North grinned at the look on Bunny's face, and strolled out.  
"Good luck, Bunny!"  
Bunny sighed, rolling his eyes.  
"Im gonna need it..."  
Trying to make the guardian of fun have fun? Looks like he was gonna have his work cut out for him...  
_

Jack sighed, as he leant against the wall, watching the Pooka finally seem to give in and do the same.  
"Sorry Bunny... Im just not in the mood."  
Sure the room was perfect and amazing and normally he would have spent hours there, but with everything that was going on, he was just too pre-occupied.  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Mate, since when is the guardian of fun not in the mood for fun?"  
"Since the guardian of fun started tracking down some one who likes to destroy stuff and try to get me framed for it..."  
Bunny sighed.  
"Okay, I can see why that might pout a bit of a damper on ya mood mate, but we're all worried about ya. And if ya've got as much information as us, ya know nothin. There's no point in worryin' about it til there is somethin' ya can do about it."  
Jackr aised an eyebrow.  
"That sounded halfway wise, furball..."  
"What d'ya expect? Wisdom comes with age..."  
Jack sighed, inwardly, then smiled, rolling his eyes and falling right into the trap the Pooka had set.  
"Then let's see what ya got, old timer..."  
Bunny grinned, as well, glad to see his plan worked. Jack was just so easy to manipulate sometimes... Even if he had willingly walked into it.  
Whatever, Bunny was going to count it as a win.

A couple of hours later, they were both laughing as they competed in various activities.  
Climbing, gymnastics, sparring, running, they tried everything, and Jack grinned as he flopped down on one of the benches.  
"Okay, you win. You can run further..."  
"Of course I can. Im a Pooka..." Bunny said, grinning, as he sat next to the winter spirit. "So, did I manage it?"  
"Manage what?"  
"To get you to have some fun."  
Jack blinked, then rolled his eyes, even as he grinned.  
"Yeah, ya managed it. Thanks, I think I needed it."  
"No problem Frostbite. Ya know, this means we can just move all of ya stuff here, instead of the warren?"  
Jack blinked, then nodded.  
"Good plan. Ya busy?"  
Bunny grinned.  
"Not really, but I sense I'm goin ta be."  
"You sensed right."  
_

This time, Bunny was the first to flop down, this time agaisnt a tree in the warren.  
They had spent the last half an hour making trips to the pole with some of both his and Jacks weapons, and that, joined witht he fact that a storm seemed to be on it's way-evident from the humidity- had him wanting to just sleep.  
Jack seemed to be having the same idea, but Bunny blinked as he saw the younger guardians worried expression.  
"Ya alright, Frostbite?"  
"Huh? Oh, yeah... Just erm... Storm right?"  
"Looks like... Ya sure ya're alright?"  
Jack was about to nod again, when there was a clap of thunder, and he immediately froze, taking deep breaths.  
Bunny was next to him in a flash, seriously panicked.  
"Hey! Hey, Jack? Ya okay mate? Its only..."  
Then he blinked. Thunder...?  
"Jack? What's up? Is it the thunder?"  
The winter spirit looked about to deny it, then sighed.  
"I-I know. It's stupid... But when I fell through the ice, as a human... The ice sounded just like thunder.. Ive always been... I just..."  
He ran a hand through his hair, clearly on edge.  
"I just... don't like thunder." He gave a small, self deprecating laugh. "Stupid right? Jack Frost is afraid of thunder..."  
"Nah... Not at all, mate."  
Bunny shook his head, at the disbelieving look he was given.  
"Hey, do ya see me judgin ya?"  
"I-Well, no but... Still..."  
"Still nothin. Everyone's afraid of somethin."  
Jack gave a humourless laugh.  
"Yeah... Somethin. Right. Next you'll be tellin me that you don't think it's stupid that I have aquaphobia..."  
Bunny had to think for a moment, as he recalled what the phobia was. Then, when he recalled it, he gave the younger guardian a bemused look.  
"Fear of drowning? Why would that be stupid?"  
"Well, Im a spirit... I _can't _drown."  
"But ya did... It'd be weird if you weren't affected by it in someway."  
Jack gave him a bewildered, and slightly challenging look.  
"Really? What about thermophobia."  
"Yer a winter spirit mate. Ya'd be stupid not to be afraid of the heat. And anyway, it seems you managed to overcome it when ya need to. Not many could say the same about phobia's they have."  
Jack snorted.  
"Fine, there are reasons for those. But what about Cleisiophobia?"  
"I kinda have it myself."  
"But you run around in tunnels!"  
"There is a big difference between being in a small space and being _locked or trapped _in a small space."

Bunny couldn't believe what he was hearing.  
_Jack Frost_ was insecure about a couple of phobias, and how he thought people would react about them? He sighed.  
"Right, now ya listen 'ere. First, ya have no reason ta be insecure about a few phobias. Trust me, no-one's gonna be judgin ya, especially not me. Second, ya should have more faith in yerself. Fear of heat, yet ya visit Tooth all the time, ya followed BT almost to the bloody equator, ya'v tried to visit hotter climates... Mate, fighting yer fears like that takes some real will power..."  
"Really? Everytime I come across a storm, I head in the other direction."  
"And I'd probably do the same."  
"Yeah. Right."  
"Damn it, Frostbite, aren't ya listenin ta me? Anyway, it's not the best idea to fly in a storm anyway. That's just stupid. And who wouldn't be affected by being reminded of when they died every time they heard thunder?"  
Jack opened his mouth to speak again, then closed it, sighing.  
"Not just thunder... There was another reason I didn't like guns... Didn't like the wars... To top off all the violence and pain and blood, every time a cannon fired, every time a gun went off... All I could see was ice cracking and I didn't know why. I couldn't remember anything, so I had no idea what the visions meant..."  
He had the faraway look in his eyes that showed he was thinking back to his past, and Bunny was not about to let him go off into a trance.  
He grabbed the younger guradians shoulder, and gave him a small shake.  
"Hey, now ya listen ta me. Ya're one of most _'get back up and never gonna keep me down'_ spirits I know. But it's okay to show some weakness sometimes Jack."

Jack snorted, fixing him with a disbelieving look, clearly still half in the past.  
"Really? Because over 300 years alone, I learnt a different message. You learn to look after yourself. You learn to rely on no-one _but_ yourself. You learn to get yourself up and keep yourself going because there is no-one there to help you!"  
Just like that, in the same matter of fact, yet pained voice, Jack let it all come out.  
"You learn to bury and ignore your fears, or you learn to run from them... You learn to stop facing them after a while, because they never go away! None of it ever goes away! None of it! And you know what makes it worse? I can't dwell on any of it, because if I do, I risk losing control! You know something else Im afraid of? What Im really afraid of? Im afraid of losing control... of getting angry... Because whenever I do, someone gets hurt! I can't even focus on my fears, because then I risk losing it! Tell me, just how do you expect me to be able to brush it all off? Believe everything is okay? Well I can't do that! 300 years is a long bloody time, and I cant!"  
Like that, everything came out, and that, coupled with the underlying frustration at the recent problems he was facing andthe lingering emotions from the short flashbacks from a few moments earlier had Jack wanting to lash out... Wanting to...  
He span and lashed out, channelling all of the pent up energy into a single punch. As soon as his skin touched the tree he was aiming for, it turned to ice, which promptly shattered under the force he threw against it.  
Then he sank to the floor, taking deep breaths.  
Bunny, still frozen to the spot by the suddeness of the tirade, and wondering just how long the younger guardian had been holding all of that in, took a few seconds to regain movement, at which point, Jack seemed to have recovered slightly.  
"S-sorry... I didn't... Didn't mean to..."  
The rest of what he was going to say was cut off as the Pooka pulled him into a hug.  
At first, Jack seemed to want to fight it, then he gave in.

"Sorry..."  
"No, _I'm_ sorry Jack... You shouldn't a had to go through all that... At least when ya became a guardian, I should'a made sure you were okay..."  
"I-Im fine..."  
"Really? The shards of ice would indicate otherwise..."  
Jack sighed, as he pulled back.  
"I-I just... After so long keeping everything in, you can't really... tell... anyone..."  
"Yeah... But at least we made a start, eh mate?"  
He gave a small smile.  
"Yeah..."  
"And at least this kinda explains the anger management issues I've heard about- Hey!"  
This was in responce to being hit with a snowball.  
"That's just rude."  
"So was the anger management quip."  
"... Okay, fair enough. And remind me never to get you mad, eh? Or to at least have a tree nearb-"  
Another clap of thunder had Jack jumping slightly, and shivering as the heat and humidity seemed to rise even higher.  
Bunny smiled, wrapping an arm around Jack's shoulders.  
"Come on, mate. Let's head to the Pole. Maybe we can channel that anger into something more productive... I still say ya cheated with the fighting staffs."  
Jack gave him a grateful smile, which quickly morphed to a grin.  
"You're on..."  
_

Half an hour later, and Bunny was grinning as the younger guardian raced against the rotating rock wall, climbing with an uncanny speed and attempting to match the pace of the machine.  
He knew he had a task ahead of him. It was about time Jack started to learn what it meant to be part of a group. About time he started to learn that he didn't need to be invincible. About time he learnt that he didn't have to keep everything in and that there were people who wouldn't judge him as he was used to...  
And about time Bunny actually stepped up to the role.

* * *

**Woah... How did it turn to such angstyness? I don't even know... And to think I started out with the idea of having this as something small and filler...ey at the start of this chapter...  
Ah well, I got some more bromancey shizzle in there, and hopefully rubes99 will approve! (In response to her request of showing that even Jack has his weaknesses... There we go, quite a few in one fell swoop, and I may be revisiting them soon, depending on what everyone thinks :D)  
Hopefully it wasn't too OOC?**

**And don't worry! Jack's back to his usual bad-ass...ness next chapter :D**

**So... what **_**did **_**you think? (I wasn't sure about the very last little section, so thoughts?)  
Please review and let me know!  
Oh, and hope you enjoyed, Rubes!**

**Raven xx**


	27. Jack can Draw? And paint and-and-

**Nothing dangerous, nothing angsty, action-packed or painful... just a nice little chappie where we learn of another of Jack's talents, that quite a few of you have asked to see :D (I know, two updates in one day! Kinda to make up for the angst fest the last chapter turned into...)**

**And some of you my have noticed that I changed the drama genre of this story to general, because, as Faliara pointed out, there has not been much drama, against the amount of humour and stuff... No real reason I told you that, but I just kinda felt like it :D  
**

**Thanks to MRose5, magiccatprincess and shimmer-snowflake for the follows/faves since the last chapter!**

**I actually had this idea quite a while ago, but now that I know people definitely want to read it, how could I say no?  
Hope it meets expectations, guys!  
**

* * *

Bunny raised an eyebrow as Jack silently strolled past the open door.  
If he hadn't been looking, he wouldn't have realised he was there.  
As it was, he was looking, and decided to get up and follow him. He wasn't really one for sitting around on his odd days off... Even if he had decided to come to the Pole for some peace.  
Jack ended up leading him to the very old sections of Santoff Claussen, and he wondered what on earth Jack was doing in the old work-room.  
Jack darted in one of the rooms, leaving the door slightly ajar behind him.  
For a few minutes, Bunny heard nothing, and was just debating whether or not to go and have a look when the winter spirit appeared in the corridor, and head in the other direction.  
Bunny took his chance and snuck to the door, sliding inside.  
What he found had him speechless.  
Canvases were everywhere. Paintings of Santoff Claussen, both inside and out, paintings of the warren, the eggs, the golems, paintings of the Tooth Palace, paintings of golden dream sand and Sandy sending out dreams...  
Each of the paintings were made with the tiniest brush strokes, and the paintings were... well, incredible didn't cover it. Perfect colours, details...  
Then there were various drawings stuck around the room and left on tables and work benches, half finished sketches, full sketches shaded in, odd things that were clearly doodles, but were incredible anyway.  
Drawings of tiny fairies, streams of sand, elves, their various homes...  
Combinations of paintings and drawings, and beautiful pictures made with inks and watercolours and pastels...  
No wonder the kid had been able to help with the eggs so well last Easter.  
He had known he was good, but this?  
It was easily as good as, no, probably better than anything even he could do, himself.  
He was so busy staring that he didn't see a certain winter spirit enter the room, and jumped when he heard his voice.  
"Err... Bunny?"

"Jack! Oh, sorry mate... I err... I was just curious and... Wow, I mean, where did you learn to paint and draw and stuff?"  
Jack shrugged, self consciously,  
"I... well, I didn't really get caught. Shady brought me some paints and pencils one time, and I just kinda... yeah. I mean, most of these were just experiments and practise pieces."  
Bunny blinked, and whistled softly.  
"Ya got some serious talent there, Frostbite. I'm serious. How long have you been doing these for?"  
"Ever since I-I came to Santoff Claussen."  
Bunny blinked when he realised that Jack was... was that embarrassment?  
"_Is that all_? Mate, these are... they're just incredible. Better than anything I could do-"  
"Yeah, right."  
"I'm serious! They're amazing..."  
Bunny turned back to see the random sketches and small paintings, clearly experiments, and focused in on the detail of the small trails of golden sparkles.  
He span back to see Jack, who was self consciously lounging on a table, feet swaying across the floor, and the younger spirit grinned, sighing.  
"Yeah, I know. Jack Frost, the emotionless loner, paints."  
"That's-I wasn't thinking that! I honestly think they are amazing, Frostbite. I'm serious!"  
"... Really?"  
"Damned straight!"  
Jack grinned slightly, and another painting caught Bunny's eye.  
Of what appeared to be a frozen ice palace.  
Jack noticed where he was looking, and went self conscious again.  
"Oh, yeah... I'll sometimes get bored and create ice sculptures and palaces. Then if I get the chance, I'll photograph them and paint or draw them."  
He hopped down from the table and rifled through a nearby stack of drawings, pulling one out and handing it to the Pooka.  
"It's not my best sketch but..."  
It was of the same sculpted ice palace as in the painting, but had extra details and patterns etched into it, with shading around the edges.  
It was a perfect replica of the painting, and looked like it could have been a photograph.  
"Mate, this is great!"  
Jack grinned again, shrugging.  
"Yeah?"  
"Hell yeah. Why have we never heard of this particular talent of yours?"  
"I painted the eggs...?"  
"Yeah, and they were great, but this is in a whole other league... Why have you never shown one of us this room before?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Never saw a need to..."  
Bunny shook his head.  
"Ya know, I'm starting to think we'll never learn all of your secrets, Frostbite. Ya know, you should show Tooth this. She loves art..."  
"I dunno..."  
"Aww, come on?"  
Jack grinned, rolling his eyes.  
"Maybe."

A few minutes later, and Bunny was rifling through the rest of the drawings, whilst Jack grabbed a paintbrush and started mixing colours.  
Bunny, as soon as Jack brought the brush to the canvas, found himself entranced by the dancing colours that seemed to come to life by Jack's hand, and watched as the canvas turned into a pattern of golden sparks, forming eggs, small fairies, elves, wrapped gifts, various other dreams that he knew were regular ones for Sandy, and patterns of snowflakes and what appeared to be frost paned glass.  
Jack finally dropped the brush, about an hour later, and sighed.  
"Not the best, but ah well. Just to practice techniques after all."  
Bunny just looked at him, and shook his head.  
"Mate, ya have no idea, do ya?"  
He blinked.  
"What?"  
"Nothing. I'd betta be off. See ya later Frostbite."  
The younger spirit nodded, and Bunny left.  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
His work really was not worth the attention Bunny had lavished on it... Was it?  
_

An hour later, Jack was interrupted from the book he was reading as Tooth knocked on the door and came in.  
"Jack? I just heard from Bunny that you have something to show me?"  
Jack thought for a moment, then sighed, rolling his eyes.  
"He's under the belief that you will probably want to see some paintings and things I've done over the last year or so."  
Tooth giggled.  
"He didn't put it quite like that, but yes. Can I see them?"  
Jack raised an eyebrow, and Tooth gave him the widest, sweetest smile she could.  
"Pretty please, Sweet Tooth?"  
Jack sighed, getting to his feet.  
"Okay then."

Five minutes later, and they were flying into the room.  
Tooth gave a small gasp as she took it in.  
It was all the sound she could manage.  
For the next ten minutes, she frantically flitted between paintings, rifled through drawings, and gave odd giggles and gasps of delight as she took in the various paintings of Fairies.  
She only stopped when she came across a half finished sketch.  
It was of the Tooth palace, several fairies hovering around the edges, and Tooth realised it must be based on a photo that Jack must have taken.  
Jack gave a self conscious shrug, taking it.  
"Yeah, I never finished this one." He frowned, taking it in, and grabbed a pencil, starting to shade.  
Tooth watched the pencil flit back and forth across the page, shading and outlining and adding details and she sighed, her eyes flicking to the rest of the things in the room.  
He was an artist.  
Not just any artist though... The way he captured the world around him was...  
She was just entranced by the beauty of the work.  
As much as she was entranced by the woven lyrics and chords he played on the various instruments, she was likewise entranced by the swirls of colour and details and patterns and beauty of the work around her.  
Ten minutes later, Jack gave a small smile as he finished the sketch, and blinked, getting an idea.  
He flitted around the room, grabbing various sketches, ink pictures and paintings on loose pieces of paper, and hunted for the sketchbook he knew he had somewhere, filled with pictures of the Tooth Palace, the fairies and various other things related to Tooth.  
He grinned as he found it, and slotted in the various loose images, before handing it to a delighted Toothiana.  
"Oh Jack these are beautiful!"  
She spent a few minutes flicking through, before going to hand it back, only to have Jack shake his head.  
"Nah, you have it. Why do you think I went hunting for them?"  
She blinked, shocked.  
"Really?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Sure. I have so many different things around here, I would probably only throw them or lose them eventually anyway."

Ten minutes later, and they were sat in the small living room, at the end of the guest wing.  
Tooth was going through the book again, this time taking her time, and found herself, on multiple occasions, tracing the fine lines that covered the surface of the thick paper, or running her fingertips over the texture created by the smooth, tiny brushstrokes of paint.  
The detail, depth, shading, smoothness of the lines and overall beauty of the pictures had her awed, and she grinned as North came in.  
"Hey, North! Look at this!"  
Jack sighed as North gaped at the pictures, then looked to Jack when Tooth told him he had drawn them.  
"And that isn't all, North! There is an entire room, ya know, over in the old wing? That's just full of drawings, paintings... They're incredible!"  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"I'm gonna spread some snow. If you want to take a look, I'm sure Tooth can show you."  
Tooth blinked.  
"D you mind with you not there?"  
Jack shrugged,  
"Go ahead. The only reason I used that room is because I didn't want to interrupt anyone or interfere with anything. You can look all you like."  
_

By the end of that day, all of the guardians had see Jack's work.  
Tooth spent hours going over the pictures in the book Jack had given her, and he had eventually given up and thrown together a selection of work for Sandy too, as he seemed so entranced by the images, including sketches, drawings and paintings of swirls of golden sand and images from dreams, scenes where Jack must have seen Sandy giving dreams and transferred them into pictures, and various other pieces of work that Sandy had seemed to favour.  
In response to the clear indication from Jack that it really was no trouble for them to have them, both Sandy and Tooth had hugged him, and whereas Tooth stayed at the Pole that night, looking through it over and over, Sandy took his with him, and Jack rolled his eyes when he heard that the guardian of dreams had spent all night looking through his too.  
None-the-less, he was pleased that they appreciated it so much.

He eventually said goodnight, and head up to his room, still kinda wondering what all the fuss was about and leaving North to grin and turn to Tooth.  
"You know, Tooth, I am beginning to think that we shall never learn all of his secrets, da?"  
Tooth smiled.  
"Yeah, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It would take all the fun out of our lives..."

* * *

**(Long footnote, I know, but please read...?) *puppy dog eyes... then changes to using the force*  
****Me using the force:_ You will read the footnote...  
_****Yoda: Oh no, be polite you must.  
Me: Oh fine, Yoyo, I'll be polite...  
****Me using the force:_ You will read the footnote... Please_?  
****Me: There, happy?  
Yoda: Muchly I am...  
Me: Ok, this is now weird, and I'm going to stop...**

**Sooo... What do you think? (About the chapter, not my spiraling descent into insanity and the force...)  
I think that Artisty/Jack will have to make as much of a return as Musical/Jack... Because I really want to do a fic where he gets his confidence up about his own abilities, or something like that.  
What do you guys reckon?**

_**-IMPORTANT SHIZZLE- **_

**And what if Jack has darker secrets? Not seriously dark, but things/abilities that show yet another side of him, a slightly darker side that he tries to never show? (I know I did something similar in Jack Can Dance, with the whole Glacier look thing, so maybe go into that a bit more?)  
GAH! I need your guys ideas, and coherent thoughts, because mine just won't go straight inside my head... HELP!  
As in... SOS, SOS... (wait, save _our_ souls? Should be save _my_ soul, or rather,_ save my muse_ so...) SMM! SMM! **

**_-END OF IMPORTANT SHIZZLE-_**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and please review to let me know what you think!  
And if you would like to see Artisty/Jack return, just let me know, and same goes for Musical/Jack, Dance/Jack, Cooking/Jack, Ninja/Jack... and the other sides of Jack I have mentioned, but have temporarily forgotten... *sheepish shrug*  
Or if you have any ideas for new sides of Jack (even/especially dark-ish ones) just review and let me know!**

**Raven xx**

**(oh, and to sakuradancer3, this was kind of a practice attempt at your challenge, so what did you think? I will get the actual one done as soon as my exams and shizzle have finally finished :D )**


	28. Repeating the Past

**Okay, I know I said this would be the next Christmas one, but in order to make the story-line fit together a bit more smoothly, I decided to upload this one first (It's not very long, but I'll make up for it...)**  
**Before you read, I know it's a bit cliche'ish, but I love the idea of... well, wait and see, so much, I just couldn't resist :D  
Oh, and seeing as how it's a bank holiday, I may just be able to get the Christmas one finished and uploaded in between revising and stuff, So I'll see what I can do to get it uploaded later today.  
Till then, enjoy!**

* * *

Jamie laughed as Sophie eagerly tugged on her ice skates.  
"Hurry Jamie! I wanna go skating!"  
Jamie was still laughing as he tugged on his own, lacing them up, and didn't notice as his little sister started jumping in circles on the ground around the frozen surface of the lake.  
He was only alerted to her actions when she gave startled cry, sliding over and knocking her head on the nearest tree.  
"Sophie!"  
Jamie quickly scrambled to his feet, racing towards her, but before he could get more than a few steps, she had bounced back, and stumbled onto the ice, slightly dizzy.  
She finally managed to shake her head and clear it as she fell over, not having been focused on keeping her balance, and Jamie's heart leapt as he heard the ice start cracking.  
His first thought was to rush to his sister, but as soon as his foot touched the ice a few paces from the lake, an ominous cracking sounded, and he realised he couldn't risk going any closer.  
"Sophie?"  
"Jamie...? My head hurts..."  
"I know. Just come over here, and I can have a look okay?"  
She nodded, and got to her feet, screaming slightly when she finally heard the cracks forming in the ice.  
"J-Jamie...?"  
"It's okay Soph, but I need you to come a bit closer to me..."  
"I-I can't..."  
She seemed frozen to the spot, wobbling slightly as she tried to keep her balance, and she gave Jamie a terrified look.  
"Jamie? Jamie, I'm scared..."  
"It's okay, you'll be fine... But I need you to move a little closer... okay? Just a little step..."  
She took a small step, screaming slightly when the ice cracked again, and started shaking.  
"J-Jamie I can't..."  
"Sure ya can-"  
"I can't!" Frustrated tears started falling, and she gave another small scream when the ice cracked even further.  
"Jamie!"  
Jamie took a single step forward, and that was all the force the ice needed to start to break up.  
Sophie gave one small scream before she slipped backwards and tumbled into the water.  
"Sophie!"  
Jamie was about to jump in after her when he felt a cold hand on his shoulder, holding him back, and felt a wooden staff shoved into his arms.  
"Hold this and get to the edge of the lake!" Jack said already moving, having just landed next to Jamie as Sophie fell in, and he dived into the water, vanishing from view.

Jack had just landed next to Jamie when Sophie fell into the water, and he realised that there was nothing he could do with the ice to help.  
He shoved the staff at Jamie, yelling at him to get back to solid ground, before ignoring the gut wrenching fear and instincts screaming at him to leave the water, and diving in.  
His eyes caught sight of Sophie, and he swan down, managing to grab one of her hands and pulling her closer to him, letting her instinctively clutch his chest.  
He mentally cursed as he realised that he had swum away from the hole in the ice, and did a backwards flip in the water, shoving against the unbroken ice with his feet.  
He was rewarded with a crack, and did the same thing again, making it cracked enough for him to get a decent hold and push himself through the ice, one hand gripping it and the other clutching at Sophie.  
The whole thing couldn't have lasted any longer than a few seconds, but it had felt like an age.  
Jack cautiously got to his feet, balancing on the ice, and sensed the safest route back to the bank.  
But he would have to be quick.  
"Hold on, okay sweetie?"  
Sophie nodded, shivering and sobbing into his chest, and he tightened his grip on her, leaping just as the ice beneath him cracked.

He landed on a thicker patch, and ran for a few steps before leaping onto another patch and leaping into the air, doing a front flip and coming to land on the edges of the lake.  
He leapt forward again, coming to a firm rest on the solid ground, and pulled the small girl closer to him, stroking her back.  
Jamie flung himself down beside them, and tried to comfort his sister, making her only cling harder to the winter spirit.  
"Jamie? I need your coat... She'll freeze if we don't get her warm."  
He gently prised her shivering arms from around his neck, and wrapped her in the coat, getting to his feet, still dripping wet.  
"Come on, let's get you home..."  
Jamie hurried alongside them, letting Jack carry her, and panicking.  
"Will she be okay?"  
Jack nodded.  
"We'll get her home. I don't think she was in the water long enough for it to have been too dangerous. We just need to get her warm and dry soon, or else it might get bad..."  
He quickly grabbed one of the spare orbs from his pocket, and opened a portal to the foot of Jamie's garden, leaping through.  
He handed her to Jamie just as they reached the back door, and stroked Sophie's hair.  
"Hey, Jamie's gonna get you inside okay? I'll be waiting upstairs."  
_

Jamie rushed her into the house, calling for his mother, who gasped as she caught sight of Sophie.  
"She fell through the ice. J-I got her out, and she was only there for a few seconds..."  
His mother took Sophie, and quickly set about getting her warm, and grabbing fresh clothes.  
After about half an hour, his mother seemed to lose some of her tension as she realised that Sophie had avoided the worst, and smiled at Jamie.  
"You did good Jamie... Any longer and I might have had to take her to the hospital."  
"So she'll be okay?"  
"Yes, she will be fine. I have to say, that lake doesn't seem to like our family..."  
Jamie blinked.  
"What? Why not?"  
His mother gave him a sad smile, as she wrapped Sophie tighter in a blanket, carrying her upstairs, Jamie trailing behind.  
"Well, over the last few hundred years, a lot of our family and ancestors have fallen in there, some very nearly dying because of it."  
"Did anyone actually die?"  
"Yes, but it was a long time ago. A young boy, Jackson or something, I think my nanna once told me, died whilst saving his sister. The story used to make me sad when I was a child."  
Jamie had frozen as he heard that, and blinked.  
Luckily, his mother didn't seem to notice as she tucked Sophie in, and kissed he on the cheek.  
"There ya go, sweetie."  
Sophie mumbled something about Jack, and his mother frowned.  
"Jack?"  
Jamie blinked.  
"Err, yeah. One of Sophie's friends from over the other side of town. Ya know, Jackie Wilson?"  
"Oh, yes."  
Jamie gave a sigh of relief as his mother brought the excuse, and they both stay for a while until Sophie fell asleep, at which point his mother got to her feet and gently told him that if he wanted to stay, he shouldn't wake her up, and that she would be back up in a little bit with some hot soup for him.  
He nodded, scooching closer to his sister as his mother closed the door, leaving it slightly ajar, and his sigh was met with another, causing him to spin and see Jack.  
"She okay?"

Jamie nodded, moving a little to let Jack sit down, and Sophie opened two bleary eyes as Jack sat down.  
"Hey Sweetie, you okay?"  
"Mhm. Just tired..."  
"Then you get some sleep, eh? You'll feel better then."  
He kissed her lightly on the forehead, as she drifted off, then raised an eyebrow at Jamie, who was looking at him weirdly.  
"Y'alright kiddo?"  
"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Just thinking that, now that I know what to look for, I can kinda see the family resemblance..."  
Jack blinked.  
"What?"  
Jamie gave small grin.  
"Yeah. Hello great, great, great, great, great, great, however many more greats', great Uncle Jack."  
Jack blinked again.  
"C'mon then Kiddo, this I have to hear..."  
_

Jack flew in the window of Santoff Claussen, and North and Tooth stared as they realised his clothes had recently been wringing wet, and he looked worried, shocked, amused and confused.  
"Sweet Tooth? You okay? What happened...?"  
Jack blinked as he looked at her, then opened his mouth to speak.  
He closed it again.  
This happened a further three times before he managed to speak.  
"Long story short. Sophie fell into the lake at Burgess, I got her out. She'll be fine, and I'm more than fine because I just discovered that Jamie and Sophie and their family are related to me, and, what's more, are descendants of my sister. So the adrenaline is still going down, the panic is still there a little, I'm worried for no good reason, but I like being able to worry which makes no sense at all, I need to get changed and I'm ridiculously happy as well. Oh, and I'm tired, so do you both mind if I just explain properly later? Because I really need to get some sleep."  
Tooth and North were both staring at him, and North was the first to respond.  
"I- Yes, you go sleep. We shall talk later."  
Tooth nodded, before giving him a hug.  
"Well done, and good for you Jack."  
"Cheers Tooth... Later North..."  
He yawned as he flew out, and the two older guardians shared a look before sighing.  
"It's gonna be a long story, isn't it?"  
"Da... But is something I much want to hear."  
"Definitely."

* * *

**I know, I know. I'm pretty sure the idea had been used before... Countless times most likely, but I really wanted to use it. I think it's a sweet and totally awesome idea for them to be related, and the family resemblances are too strong to ignore.  
Anyway, do not fear, this is the first and last cliché...ish chapter I'll be doing, and it's back to my usual random shizzle next chapter :D  
(Though this may be coming in handy in further chapters... Okay, shutting up now :D)**

**And yeah! Jack faced one of his worst fears... I know I didn't make much of it in the actual chapter, but I figure I didn't need to, because you guys would all get it :D  
.. You **_**did **_**get it right?  
And yeah, I know you're not supposed to sleep and what-not after stuff like that, but details... details...**

**Please review and let me know what you think!**

**Raven xx**


	29. A Family Christmas

**Okay, I'm warning you guys now, this is going to be a long one... A very long one...  
Most likely the longest one yet, and making this fic worthy of the 1000-6000 words that I reported it as having.  
And yes, this timeline has gone quickly... It seems like only a few weeks ago that the guardians were celebrating Christmas- Oh wait, it was.  
*sheepish grin, and shrug***

**Okay, and as per some requests, this chappie will have a little bit of dance jack and arty jack, as they seem to be particular faves, as well as a new side of Jack, which I hope you all approve of :D  
Oh, and thanks so much for the really detailed reviews over the last couple of chapters! You guys know who you are!  
****And thanks to TheRandomlyFandom for the fave!**

***hugs* to everyone, and hope you enjoy!**

* * *

North threw his hands up and cried out in frustration.  
"It will not work, Phil! In time for tonight? Not a chance on Moon."  
The Yeti grunted, not quite sure how to comfort the guardian, and North threw the oily rag to the floor, storming off to find the original plans.  
He didn't notice the youngest guardian drop from the ceiling, and didn't hear as Phil explained what was wrong-namely that something was wrong with the sleigh and it wouldn't fly, possibly due to previously unnoticed damage from a run in with Pitch- or see Jack frowning, leaning in over the various mechanisms.  
Then the winter spirit grinned.  
Had he never told the others that he was actually a pretty good mechanic?  
He tugged his hoody off, rolling his eyes and sighing at the fact that his t-shirt was white, and flexed his fingers, grabbing for North's tool box, before getting to work.

Bunnymund, Tooth and Sandy were worried. Nope, that was an understatement. They were downright panicked as to how they would deliver all the presents without the sleigh.  
And if _North _couldn't fix it?  
North had been avidly staring at the plans for the engine since they had arrived, and Bunny sighed, eventually grabbing both North and the plans and dragging him towards the sleigh hangar.  
"No good worrying about it 'ere mate."  
They all blinked as they heard someone talking to Phil, combined with the sounds of various clanks of metal, and North peered around the door to see Jack, leaning over the engine, taking a wrench that Phil was handing him.  
His first thought, to find out just what the hell was going on, was disregarded as he decided to see what the boy was doing.  
Trying to fix the sleigh obviously...  
Then he blinked, as Jack gave a satisfied sigh, and gestured for Phil to test it.  
The guardians all stared as the engine came to life without a hitch, causing Jack to grin, before he caught sight of them.  
He gave a sheepish grin as he wiped his hands on a cloth.  
"Sorry North... I've just seen similar engines in plane hangar bays before... Wasn't hard to see how you've connected it all together and such."  
North simply blinked.  
"You... you fixed it?"

Jack gave a shrug, as if to say 'yeah... why's that so strange?'  
"Yeah. Just a few problems with the combustion valve and the two separate parts of the engines seemed to have been forced together, probably by a quite strong impact. Bit of Nightmare sand too, which didn't help matters. Overall, ya just needed to give it a full work over and I changed some things so it would be more stable, yet would go faster and... What?"  
This was in response to the guardians shocked expressions, and Jack blinked.  
"Err... Guys?"  
"You fixed my sleigh?"  
"Um... Yeah?"  
Jack choked as he was caught up in a bear hug by North, before the huge guardian went skipping off to investigate.

Jack stared, bemused, as North ranted on about how the modifications would make his trips much easier, and why had he never thought of them, and why had Jack failed to inform him he was capable of practically building an engine that would be perfect for a fighter plane.  
Bunny shook his head as Jack sent him a questioning look.  
"Don't look at me, Frostbite. I'm as shocked as he is. Where'd ya learn ta become a first rate mechanic, eh?"  
Jack gave him his '_Really? Did you seriously just say that?_' look, and rolled his eyes.  
"I've told you I had to find ways to fill 300 years. It's an awfully long time, Kangaroo. As soon as they invented cars, I was out learning all about the engines. Then upgraded to planes, which were so much more interesting. Then the fighter jets? Don't get me started... Oh, and when I caught sight of the sleigh? I've been wanting to have a look at it for ages..."  
Tooth giggled at the gleeful look on Jack's face.  
"Hey, Sweet Tooth? I don't mean to interrupt, but unless you want a very cheerful North on you, I'd run."  
Jack blinked, then looked to North.  
"I'll err... See you guys later. I... err, ya know. Snow and all that."  
"Well, don't be too long! You're going to want to be back before North gets back tonight."  
Jack rolled his eyes, but nodded.  
"Sure thing."  
He flew out, taking the shortcut down the tunnel, and North gave a disappointed look as he realised he wasn't there.  
"Oh. Is shame, I wanted to talk about how he made engine capable of speeds of fifteen percent faster than before...I had thought it impossible, but I appear to be wrong."  
Tooth shared a look with the other two, that was very clear and had them both giving her indignant looks.  
_Men...  
__

Jack grinned as he landed in Jamie's room, and gave the boy a hug, before being pounced on by Sophie, who was now fully recovered from her dip in the lake a couple of weeks ago.  
"Hey Guys, how ya doing?"  
"Good..." Jamie replied, as Sophie started giggling when Jack covered her in snowflakes. "Is North all set for Christmas?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Yup. How about you guys?"  
Jamie grinned.  
"All done. Do we get a white Christmas?" Jamie was grinning, and Jack laughed as he rolled his eyes.  
"You already know the answer to that. Don't I always?"  
"Yeah. Hey, what are you doing for Christmas?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Going to be at the Pole with the others. And maybe gonna be seeing some old friends. But I'll come and see you tomorrow, okay? We do need to get the others back for that snowball defeat... And what better way than beating them on Christmas Day?"  
Jamie laughed.  
"Must be the first time you've ever lost a snowball fight."  
"I was... distracted. It doesn't count." Jack said, hiding his smile, and Jamie rolled his eyes.  
"Yeah, sure. Hey, do you reckon Bunny can visit Sophie?"  
Sophie blinked at that, and pounced on Jack.  
"Yeah! Can Bunny visit? I haven't seen him in ages..."  
She gave him huge puppy eyes, and Jack grinned.  
"Won't work on me, little missy. I taught them to you, remember? The kangaroo might be defenseless against them, but I'm not-"  
"But Uncle Jackie..." she said, pouting but smiling slyly.  
Jack blinked, then sighed.  
Not only Jackie, but _Uncle_ Jackie? How could he say no to that?  
"Alright, I'll drag him over here. And hey, that makes me sound old!"  
"You are old!"  
Sophie began squealing as Jack tickled her, and Jamie quickly escaped to the far side of the room, laughing, so that he wouldn't be dragged into it.  
Jack left about an hour later, making it snow on his way out, and was still grinning as he arrived back at the workshop several hours later, having done his usual rounds, and having made a quick detour to the orphanage to give it a quick snow-shower.

He landed in his art room, which had now been transferred to a larger room, thanks to the rest of the guardians ignoring his protests that it really wasn't necessary.  
Ten minutes later, and he was working on finishing his gifts off.  
Namely the one he had made for Tooth, most of the others having already been completed. He finished painting on the delicate patterns, and gently sprinkled glitter on various surfaces.  
He span the brush away with a flourish, grinning at the finished product, and threw it, with uncanny accuracy, into the brush pot before wrapping the gift.  
There. Done...  
Now he just had to finish off the ones for his other friends.  
Sure, they had never really made much of Christmas, but he was determined that this year would be different. He grinned as he got to work on finishing off Iceman and Clover's gift.  
He had gone for more of a jokey kind of present, but he was sure they would appreciate it none-the-less.  
Flow, the fall spirit, had been a little easier, as he already knew what he could give her, but Gale, another spirit who was a friend of his, and Shady had been rather difficult... As had Lily, another spring spirit that he was friends-well, it had got that he was more like an older brother figure whenever he saw her- but he had eventually managed to think of something.  
It took him another hour before he was satisfied, and he finished wrapping them. Grabbing a bag, he placed them all inside, pausing as he flew back out to roll his eyes and assure Tooth that he would be back in time later that night, and flew off.  
Shady was first.

Jack blinked as he was dragged inside, and laughed as he got pinned down by Iceman.  
Well, this made things easier.  
"Hey! Woah, watch the bag..." He said, laughing as he got up, and gave Clover a hug. "You guys getting into the Christmas spirit?"  
Iceman shrugged.  
"We figured if you would head anywhere today, it would be here. No doubt you're gonna be busy at the Pole tonight, and with spreading around white Christmas' tomorrow so-"  
"Actually," Jack said, with a grin, "I was planning on going around to say hi to you two as well. Though I have to admit, this way is easier..."  
He grabbed one of the wrapped gifts from his bag, handing it to the two of the, before doing the same with Shady, shrugging at the looks the three of them gave him.  
"What? Hanging around with North creates bad habits..."  
"I think it's a good habit." Clover butted in, grinning, before she handed him a package of her own.  
"This one's from me and Icey."  
Jack blinked, then looked at Iceman suspiciously.  
"You forgave me for that storm... right?"  
Iceman laughed, wrapping his arm around Clover.  
"Don't worry, it isn't going to explode...Clo made sure of that."  
Shady laughed with Jack at that, before handing him another wrapped box.  
"I was kinda at a loss as to what to get you, but when I saw what these two managed to find... get... The decision was kinda made for me."  
Jack raised an eyebrow as he took it.  
"... Okay then... Should I be worried?"  
"Nah. Clover would have strung me up if I used this as a chance for payback."  
"You mean you're going to attempt to get payback?"  
Shady shook his head.  
"Nope. I'm not insane..."  
"Debatable."  
"Oi!"  
Jack laughed as he ducked the half hearted swipe.  
"Not bad, you nearly got me that time! And anyway, what's with the sudden interest in Christmas?"  
Clover rolled her eyes.  
"More like a sudden interest in a Jack Frost who would actually be willing to enjoy Christmas."  
"Okay, fair point... And what are you after?"  
"Just a decent chat, we haven't had one in a while. What's all this we hear about you scaring Haze?"  
"Hey!" Jack protested, "I only... looked at him. And it was ages ago!"  
Apparently, Clover wasn't going to take no for an answer, however, and Jack and rolled his eyes as he was dragged into the small kitchen area to eat and chat for the next hour or so.  
Eventually, he realised it was getting late, and he still had a few visits to make.  
Promising to see them soon, he eventually managed to escape, and head for Gale's home.

The summer spirit was surprised to see Jack, and even more shocked when he gave her a wrapped present, a quick hug, then promised to stop by for a proper talk sometime soon before flying off again.  
Gale smiled as she set the gift aside for the following day.  
Guardianship really had changed Jack for the better...  
Flow was next, and Jack was happy to see that Lily was with her.  
He was roped into staying for a while, after he had give them the presents, and rolled his eyes when they started feeling guilty, assuring them that he really didn't mind.  
Then Flow had gasped, whispered to Lily, and taken off, returning half an hour later with a wrapped box.  
Jack had blinked, then rolled his eyes and accepted it, giving them both a hug, before noticing how late it was, and realising he would have to leave.  
Deciding to just take a shortcut, he used one of the orbs he always kept on him, and arrived back at the Pole just in time to have to dive aside to avoid a panicked Yeti.  
He sighed.  
Christmas rush... What could you do, eh?

A few hours later, the rush had died down, North had left, and all of the elves and yeti's had crashed into their beds, exhausted.  
The four of them spent a few hours playing various games as they waited for North to get back, and he finally traipsed in, a few hours after midnight.  
Tooth blinked.  
"That was faster than usual?"  
North shrugged, collapsing onto the sofa, as Jack dove out of the way.  
"Sleigh went faster due to the modifications. Was excellent job Jack!"  
"No Problem..." Jack replied, migrating over to slouch down in front of the sofa that Tooth and Bunny were on.  
"Does that mean I can fly it sometime?"  
North hesitated for a few seconds, then sighed.  
"You know what? I see no problem with that. Which is worrying..."  
"Aww, come on, if I can fly a fighter jet... theoretically, anyway, then I can fly a sleigh..."  
"... I am saying nothing."  
"Really? I silenced you on Christmas day? Wow, miracles really can happen!"  
"Gah!" North sank down onto the sofa, face palming.  
"Is too early for this..."  
"Au contraire, this has only just begun-"  
Bunny sighed as Jack grinned, and as he spotted North trying to stifle his own smirk which only made the youngest guardian grin even more.  
Looks like this Christmas was going to be as interesting as last year...

The first to give out the gifts was Tooth.  
Much laughter ensued when they opened them to find a variety of dissolvable toothbrushes in different flavours, and Jack laughed even harder when he realised that one of them was cookie, adapted from one of his own recipe's.  
Of course, this naturally led onto Bunny, whom everyone assumed was going with the usual variety of chocolate-which Tooth, though she would never admit it, thought was well worth the extra flossing- had they were surprised when they realised it wasn't.

Instead, they were left in stitches, with tears of laughter running down their cheeks, as the tiny eggs, clearly small machines, walked backwards and forwards, slinging miniature boomerangs at each other.  
"Mechanics and magic," Bunny said, grinning, "Worked better than I had thought."

When they had finally recovered, North led them all to a nearby room, where he revealed what he had created for them all.  
A huge train track was wrapped around the room, crisscrossing through a full, downscaled model of the entire warren, the Tooth palace, fields of small snow sculptures and castles that Jack realised were ones he had built, various miniature re-stagings of different events, such as the final battle in the Prank war, where Jack and Sandy had teamed up, months ago, and even small cannons that sent out tiny trails of golden sparks every now and then.  
They spent quite a while looking at the various things, following around the tiny trains on their individual, criss-crossing tracks as they ran around the room, before North eventually lured everyone away with eggnog.

Sandy came next, and he spent half an hour sending twirling streams of sand into the charm orbs that he had given them last year, filling them with the protective dream sand and dreams that he had been working on since the previous Christmas.  
Then, before Jack could give out his, Baby Tooth flew in, clearly having been struggling with her burden, and dropped a neatly wrapped present in Jack's lap, before sinking down onto his shoulder, exhausted.

Jack laughed as he took off his hoody, so that she could make herself comfortable in it, and opened the present, grinning as he took in the framed picture, and delicate handwriting that covered the frame, saying '_To Peter Pan, From Tinkerbell' _and that must have taken Baby Tooth hours to do.  
It was a photo of him and her, dressed as Peter Pan and Tinkerbell, from where she had finally convinced him to do a quick photo shoot a couple of months ago.  
He was still grinning as the guardians all laughed at his expense, as they passed the picture around, and gave Baby Tooth a small kiss on her forehead, before handing her a tiny wrapped package.  
It had taken ages to make, but the look of joy on her tiny face as she un-wrapped and discovered the tiny blue hoody, in the same shade as Jack's and with small spaces for her wings in the back, made it all worth it.  
She eagerly tugged it on, and they were all left laughing and grinning as she flew around, excitedly, and started chirping to Tooth.  
Jack grinned. At least now she wouldn't freeze every time she flew in colder climates, seeing as the tiny hoody was made from a thermal fabric. The trickiness that came with making the tiny stitches...  
Ah well, it was all worth it...

Then he grinned, and grabbed another gift, handing it to North, with a serious and solemn air.  
"This is something I have never bestowed on another... Use it wisely..."  
North looked completely bemused until he unwrapped it, opened the small wooden box and pulled out a very official and dramatic looking scroll.  
He raised an eyebrow as he unfurled it, then gasped.  
"Is... Is this... It is... The Secret Cookie Formula!"  
The other guardians, including Jack, all burst out laughing at the reverent look on North's face as he held the recipe for Jack's best cookies, which the youngest guardian had always protected with the utmost care-as many of the elves, and one or two of the yeti's, had found out- and carefully rolled it back up before putting it in the box.  
Jack sighed, still grinning.  
"Why do I get the feeling I'm going to regret that?"  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Probably because he'll be on a sugar rush for the next decade, mate."  
Jack sighed, then grinned, shrugging.  
"Ah well, I won't regret it as much as this one..."  
Bunny and Sandy both raised an eyebrow as Jack handed them identical gifts, and unwrapped them, before gasping in unison and handling them with as much care as North had handled the recipe.  
Bunny shook his head as he read the title of the book,  
"One Hundred Original and Vengeance Assuring Pranks, written by Jack Frost..."  
It was a book of Jack's best pranks, and they were all handwritten and put in step by step instructions by Jack himself...  
"Frostbite, ya know what this means right?"  
He nodded, rolling his eyes.  
"I'm gonna have to up my senses ad be on alert for the next decade."  
"... Well, that too. But now we'll be prepared for your pranks!"  
Jack grinned, slyly.  
"Hey, that's only volume one... There are still several volumes to go..."  
Sandy was in a silent laughing fit as he flipped through the book, before stopping on a specific page, scanning it, and grinning evilly at Jack, who blinked.  
"Yup... Definitely gonna regret this more than the recipe... But I don't think I'll regret this one."  
He handed Tooth the last of the gifts, and she opened it, carefully, before gasping and laughing as she looked at the outside of the intricately decorated box.  
The entire surface was covered in scenes of fairies and swirling dust and glitter, painted in bright, yet delicate colours, and with fine strokes of paint and small grooves and carvings into the wood.  
It was beautiful, and she was quick to tell Jack that.  
The winter spirit simply grinned, rolling his eyes.  
"Well, I'm glad you think it's pretty, but that isn't its sole purpose."  
Tooth blinked and Jack leapt over the arm of the sofa to sit next to her.  
"Ya know you said you would make some modifications to your favourite song? Ya know, for dancing the waltz?"  
She nodded, wondering where he was going with this, and Jack grinned.  
"Well... I experimented. This was the result..."  
He flipped a small catch-hidden amongst the paint and glitter- and lifted the lid of the box.  
Two small fairies, individually carved, rose up and started spinning in intricate patterns, clearly due to some hidden mechanisms, and music started playing.  
Tooth gasped in delight, as she recognised her favourite song, but with some twists and newer combinations of some of the notes that made it something a little more... well, perfect.  
"You made this?"  
"Yeah... Took a while to figure out the right combination for the song, so I hope it's-"  
Jack was cut off as he was pulled into a hug, which left him gasping a few seconds later.  
"Oh Jack, it's perfect!"  
"G-glad you... think so..."  
He said, still trying to take in air, and he eventually grinned, as he watched Tooth desperately trying to take in all the minute changes to the song.  
"And to think I managed to keep the fact that I could carve from you guys..."  
North nodded.  
"Da, but you shall not keep more from us for long Jack. We shall discover your talents!"  
"But then where would the fun be?"  
He blinked as he was dragged to his feet, before laughing as he realised that Tooth was eagerly wanting to dance.  
He rolled his eyes, as the song began its second rendition, and gave her an elaborate bow, holding out his hand.  
She accepted it, and they quickly morphed into their own version of the waltz, which they had created the last time they had danced, and which fit the music perfectly.  
After that song had finished, Jack whispered to Tooth, who grinned before grabbing Sandy and twirling him in for another go.  
The guardian of dreams glared a Jack as he tried to avoid looking ridiculous- a feat which he was failing at- and the winter spirit grinned.  
"Hey, if you're going to prank me, I at least want there to be a reason for it!"  
Sandy rolled his eyes, then smirked.  
The message was clear.

An hour later, as the sky started to lighten, Jack realised that he had better leave if he wanted to make his last stop.  
He said a quick goodbye, before flying off, and leaving the others to wonder about where he had been heading off to, until Baby Tooth chirped up, still snuggled in her hoody, and Tooth translated.  
"She says he had to head off to Burgess... He has something for Jamie and Sophie... and he promised them a snowball fight."  
Thy all grinned at that, and Bunny smirked.  
"Anyone feel like joining him?"  
The others shared looks, then grinned.  
One snowball fight, coming up...  
_

Shady grinned as he unwrapped his present from Jack to reveal something he had been after for years. A small dagger, the hilt made of ebony wood, and wrapped with black leather in an elegantly carved black sheath. The silver of the blade was s stark contrast, and reflected the light from the small fire.  
He recalled the first time he had seen Jack training, near the monastery, and how the young spirit had let him join in, both of them discovering Shady's affinity with knife throwing.  
It fast became a joke with them, and Shady had grown attached to one of Jack's favourite daggers, more precisely, the one he held right now.  
He knew he would never really use it, aside for practicing, but the obvious thought that had gone behind the gift was touching, and he really appreciated it.  
It was also ironic, considering what he, Iceman and Clover had gotten for him...  
Iceman and Clover, who had decided to keep him company this Christmas, both rolled their eyes, but grinned at the gift, before opening their own.  
Clover gave a small giggle of delight, as Iceman laughed.  
A detailed ice carving of a small clearing, the two of them sitting next to each other, holding hands, with small patches of snow and a few new spring leaves budding of the trees...  
They both recognised the place, and realised that Jack must have see them there...  
Iceman grinned.  
"Damn, Frost can be sneaky when he wants to be..."  
"Yeah, but where would the fun be otherwise?" Clover said, likewise with a huge grin on her face.  
Shady laughed.  
"Somewhere far more manageable and far less tiring."  
"So true..." the other two said in unison, and they all laughed.

Gale laughed as she opened her gift to find a small ice picture, an image carved inside the small slab of ice. It was of her, inside a small swirl of wind, individual leaves and rays of sunlight curving and spinning round her. Clearly from the first time Jack had seen her using her power, and she smiled.  
He always did have a talent with drawing and carving... and an unsurprising affinity with ice.  
Whereas the obvious thought and effort that had gone into the gift was surprising, it was a good surprise, as was the recent changes in her friend.  
She really had to be sure to meet up properly soon...

Lily and Flow opened their gifts at the same time.  
Lily smiled, giggling a little as she took out the small, perfectly painted, wooden carving of a deer, more specifically, a small baby faun, with a pattern of snowflakes down it's shoulder.  
Trust Jack to think of something like this... She did love deer after all...  
Flow gasped as she un-wrapped hers to reveal a small model of a glade.  
But not just any glade... It was one of her favourite places, and Jack had got it down to the last detail.  
Delicately painted trees surrounded the clearing, perfect down to the last detail, but the small fountain at the centre of the glade drew her eye.  
Yes, it was a miniature fountain, in the shape of the small bubbling brook and stream, but instead of water, it was filled with tiny leaves, of all different autumn colours. Clearly some magic went into this, but it was magic well used. It was beautiful...  
They would really have to give him a proper gift next year...  
_

Jack grinned as he knocked on Jamie's window, just as Dawn broke, and the sleepy twelve year old let him in.  
"Hey Jack... What are you-" he stifled a yawn, "-you doing here so early?"  
"Just came to give you your presents, before you head downstairs."  
"You got us presents?"  
"Of course I did! Honestly... Here you go..."  
Jack had taken a while to decide on the right gift for Jamie, but after hearing him talking one day, he finally decided on the perfect one.  
"Tickets? Oh, these... Oh, no way..." A huge grin started to spread across his face, and Jack grinned.  
"Well, you remember you wanted to go see that band? And your mother said it cost too much? Well, you'll have to say you entered a competition or something, but there you go. Four tickets, in case your dad can visit, to go see them live next mon-"  
For the second time that day, Jack felt the air getting squeezed out of him as Jamie hugged him, before letting go and doing a silent jig around the room, delighted.  
Then he blinked.  
"But hang on, how the heck did you manage to-"  
"Meh, don't worry about it. Just go and have fun, yeah?"  
As to how he managed getting them...? Well, he might as well use his various money stashes for something aside from his regular contributions to charity. And this new online shopping thing made his life so much easier...  
Jamie grinned, hugging him again, before the door opened and Sophie poked her head in, grinning as she caught sight of Jack, before running and letting him lift her up into a hug.  
"Hey missy, Happy Christmas!"  
"You too Jackie! You said you would be coming later?"  
"Well, I had to give you your presents didn't I?"  
He pulled a small box from his hoody pocket, wrapped in gold paper, and put Sophie down as he handed it to her.  
"Here ya go."  
She eagerly unwrapped it and opened the small box, gasping as she caught sight of the contents.  
A small, delicate silver bracelet, with tiny silver snowflake charms, some sprinkled with silver and gold sparkles, dangling at regular intervals around it.  
She was jumping eagerly, as she made Jack put it on, then she danced around again, jingling it.  
"It's so pretty!"  
Then she blinked, as they heard footsteps, and Jack grinned.  
"Right, I'll send a few of my fun flakes, so she won't think anything of the presents or the excuses, and I'll see you guys later, okay? Be at the field at ten!"  
They both nodded, grinning, as their mother pushed the door open, and, as soon as one of Jack's flakes dissolved on the end of her nose, she simply smiled, accepting the excited excuses Jamie and Sophie gave about their presents, and laughing as she followed them downstairs.  
Jack grinned.  
It felt good to have a proper family Christmas again after so long...

Then he blinked as Tooth appeared next to him.  
"Hey Sweet Tooth, the others wanted me to let you know there is no way we'll be missing this snowball fight..."  
Jack grinned.  
"Great. I was going to ask Bunny to come and see Sophie anyway..."  
A few minutes later, Tooth used an orb to head back to the Pole, as Jack flew off in the opposite direction.  
Right... Time to spread some white winter cheer...  
_

It was about three in the afternoon when they finally returned to the pole, cold and covered in snow, but laughing.  
Jack split off from the rest of them, and head to his room, his curiosity having been re-peaked as to what his friends had gotten for him.  
He opened Flow and Lily's first, and grinned as he flipped through the photo album, clearly full of pictures from Iceman and Clover's wedding.  
He spent the next half an hour looking through them all, grinning at the small captions Flow had slotted in, before he put it in the small draw and picked up Iceman and Clovers.  
He raised an eyebrow when he felt a small pull towards whatever was inside, and was rendered speechless as he unwrapped it to find something he had never thought he'd see again.  
A very familiar dagger, trails of frost snaking up the ebony wood of the hilt and bleeding onto the pale, whitish blue blade.  
This had been the first dagger he had ever owned, and it had been the easiest to meld his powers with. He had had it for decades, until the monastery he had been frequently visiting was subject to a bout of bad luck, and had been buried in an avalanche.  
He'd lost the blade, which had come to be almost as much a part of him as the staff was, as he tried to hold back the majority of the avalanche, allowing the men to escape to safer ground, and had never considered being able to find it.  
Clearly, however, Iceman had put a lot of effort into doing just that...  
On a whim, he opened Shady's gift, and grinned as the belt and sheath fell into his hand.  
Frost marked, just like the blade that had resided in it, it had used to be a permanent fixture at his side...  
He was still grinning as he wrapped the belt around his waist, and tossed the knife in the air, catching it by the hilt as it fell back down again, and slotted it into the sheath.  
He hadn't realised how much he had missed it... But there was no way he was going anywhere without it now...  
If just for the long lost, yet familiar comfort of having the slight weight at his waist.  
Great... Just how on moon was he going to make_ this_ up to them?

Of course, walking back into the main room, and the rest of the guardians noticing the addition, led to the entire story being told, and as Jack told it, he realised that he kinda missed the old place...  
Just how hard would it be to find it and dig it out of the snow? He wasn't sure, but he was going to find out.  
It was one of his homes after all...

* * *

**Over 5500 words? Definitely the longest yet...  
Aaaanywaaayyyssss...**

**What did you all think of this Christmas?  
The gifts?  
(They were a nightmare to think of, especially as I wanted to make them different and unique and special and whatnot... Seriously, a nightmare...  
Oi! Pitch! Get out of here! Honestly... Not my fault you haven't been in the fic a lot lately. Go beat up Ice Black or something!  
*jabs with pitchfork and Pitch vanishes, grumbling*) **

**Ahem, right... Anyways, the visits to friends? Jack is a mechanic? Jack does online shopping? (Oh, come on, It makes sense!?)  
I know, only a few weeks since I uploaded the last Christmas chapter, but this series' timeline seems to be going quickly :D  
I'm definitely going to put more in on Jack's friends, and we'll be having a proper introduction sometime soon, so let me know whether you're looking forward to it!**

**-IMPORTANT SHIZZLE-**

**Who want's Jack to visit the old monastery and try and clear it out? He does need a home of his own after all... I mean, Sure, he considers the Pole home, but he needs somewhere of his own, seeing as all of the other guardians have homes...(Honestly, this idea did not occur to me until writing the last few lines of this chapter, so please let me know?)**

**-END OF IMPORTANT SHIZZLE-**

**Hope you all enjoyed!  
Raven xx  
**_

**Oh, and Lily is the OC of Mae2551 (regular reader and reviewer, and great buddy), who requested that I bring her in. I tried to fit the character with my own story line, so hope you thought it was okay Mae? Don't worry, she will be returning with the rest of Jack's friends in a couple of chapters time :D**


	30. Old Home, New Home

**I'm really sorry for the delay guys, but I had a coursework deadline and it was all a mad-cap dash to get it done, not to mention I had an exam and had to revise for it and another one and- I'm just gonna shut up now or I'll be here all day.  
Hope the length of this chapter makes up for it! **

**Thanks to eclair126 for the fave and the follow, alpha-wolf96, readbooks172 and Sorida for the follows and Frania for the fave!**

***Is about to sit back down and chill, when black nightmare sand appears*  
Damn it Pitch! You're bothering me even **_**before**_** I start a chapter now? I swear to Moon, I'll… I'll...  
*stops and grins, then pulls out two golden dream sand whips, courtesy of Sandy (credit for giving him a call goes to rats xp) before crossing arms and glaring at Pitch*  
Now, one warning. Leave, and bother me at the end of the chapter… or, better yet, at the end of the next chapter, because I might have quite a bit to say in this footnote… Go get beat up by Jack again or something…  
*Grins as Pitch storms out grumbling about readers and their ridiculously good ideas*  
Look out Rats… I think he's mad at you!  
Ah well, I'm sure you can enjoy the chapter first!**

* * *

Jack landed on the snowdrift and rolled his eyes at the air, or, more precisely, at the wind which had taken it upon itself to carry him here.  
"Okay, point taken. In future, when I say I'm gonna do something, I'll do it. And in return, you don't kidnap me and ditch me on a mountain. Deal…?"  
A small breeze ruffled through his hair, and he grinned as he trekked up the small drift, clambering onto the ridge of snow to see a very familiar spire jutting from the white landscape. Familiar because he had always liked to sit there…  
That was all that was visible of the old monastery, and Jack took a deep sigh before he got to work.

Three hours later, and he had most of the snow cleared. Well, enough to make it possible to walk through the old hallways and various rooms. The strong wooden structure seemed to have survived pretty well, with only a few collapsed beams and patches of the ceiling, which were all on the outer edges of the complex anyway. True, some of the beams and walls had threatened to collapse after he had cleared the snow out, but he had reinforced them all with Ice, as well as many of the weaker structured areas, which would mean they would stand without trouble.  
He grinned as he peered into a very familiar room, where the previous inhabitants had trained, and the grin stayed on his face as he reacquainted himself with his old home.  
He made a catalogue in his head of everything that needed doing, and was surprised to find that it did not amount to much. The ancient place seemed to have been well preserved, and all that was needed was a bit of structural work, the refurbishing of the place-though most of the basic items, such as the shelving, chairs, tables and beds, were not in too bad a condition, Jack decided that he might as well replace it all with things that were better suited and that weren't under constant threat of breaking at a moment's notice- and, Jack grinned, redecorating!  
Though he had some ideas that would make the place feel just like it had before.  
_

Over the next few days, Jack's attention was almost solely spent on the old place, though he still made sure to carry out his regular snow spreading duties and dropped in on the others.  
The other guardians had all wanted to help, but knew that it would be far too cold up there for them for any prolonged amount of time until Jack could get some kind of artificial heating or insulation set up.  
It didn't stop North from getting Phil to recruit a few yeti's to lend a hand, and Jack had been happy to see that Phil's brother-whom he had decided to call Jim, that being the only sound he had been able to pick up from his whole name- had volunteered to help, as he had met him several decades ago but only for a short while, and was glad for the chance to know him.  
With the help of their muscle, the wind, the various things North had been throwing through portals to the point where Jack had had to have a long talk about a huge chandelier not being necessary, and Jack's own 'quick to make up my mind' attitude, the place was furnished, insulated and ready to decorate within three days. The seven multi-roomed outhouses, that had used to act as small training rooms for individual training and places for visitors back in the monastery's old days, had all been individually insulated and connected to the main complex with small corridors, and furnished into small living areas with a bedroom, living room and small bathroom in each. Jack had had to hand it to North, he really did have everything you could need. Apparently magic really did have its uses…  
Jack had decided to keep the large training hall, and the smaller adjoining rooms, as they were, and had simply had the shelving and weapons racks moved back to their original positions.  
He had even uncovered some of the older weapons that had been preserved beneath the snow. True, the wooden staffs and some of the other weapons had been shattered, but a few of the swords had survived in their Saya_(1)_, and Jack had planned to have them mounted in the original places of honour on the wall, in remembrance of the men he had learnt from.  
He had also placed online orders for specific decorative items, which he was keeping a secret from… well, everyone, and had ordered them to be delivered to Jamie's address on the exact date that they were heading to see the band that Jack had brought him tickets for at Christmas.  
Of course, Jamie had only agreed if he got to see what all the fuss was about, and Jack had agreed. The new insulation meant that most of the complex was safe for humans, and he would warn him of the few places he had kept at the sub-zero temperatures, even if they were at the outer section of the compound.

A few fun flakes on the delivery day meant that the delivery guy was perfectly fine with letting Cupcake sign for the items, and Jack promised she could visit as well, before she head off and he used a portal to get a few Yeti's through to help him carry the various boxes.  
He spent the next day or so unpacking and sorting the various items, before Jack finally let them know what they were, and they all set about hanging up the authentic Japanese hangings, scripts and folding shades.  
By the time Jack was done with the final touches and the painting, the entire place was a perfect blend of the unique culture, and the living spaces, bedrooms, training rooms, even the kitchens, were like something out of an 18th century, traditional monastery. Most of the furniture had his own designs hand carved into them, and it had taken him nearly two days to make all of the finishing touches.  
But he was finally happy, and found himself grinning as he looked around the training room, where he had just finished mounting up the last Katana. The room had a similar colour scheme to the rest of the complex, with an _Akebono-iro_-or Dawn-colour- undercoat, phrases in Kanji and Katakana as well as traditional symbols and drawings painted over the top in _Karakurenai_- or foreign crimson-, _Hajizome_- or Sumac-dyed, which was one of his favourite shades of yellowish gold- and a few other shades that made up the minority.  
Just the simple touches of having everything as original and traditional as he could made it feel just like the home he had used to know, and his keen eye for detail meant it didn't clash with the more modern kinds of objects, such as the ones in the kitchens or some of the furniture.  
Though there were a couple of rooms- like the music room, where North had insisted he have a variety of instruments, or the art room, which, again thanks to North's insistent nature, was stocked with various art materials- which Jack had left unpainted aside from an undercoat of the pale _Akebono-Iro_, and he had discovered that when he played music, the sound travelled through nearly the entire compound. It was actually kinda cool…  
Then there were a few of the walls, which had ice designs trailing up them, which, surprisingly in his opinion, just seemed to blend smoothly with the mix of modern and traditional…  
Like in his room. He had chosen one of the rooms on the outer edges of the monastery, and it was a combination of ice patterns, traditional Japanese furniture, artwork and colour schemes, which blended into something that he had to admit he was proud of.  
Jack grinned. Now he just had to see what the other guardians thought…  
Phil had left to tell them that Jack was finally, as he had put it 'finished with the finishing of the finished finishing' and he was sure that they would be arriving before too long.  
_

He outright laughed when Tooth was the first to flit through, and simply hovered, staring, at the huge training room. Then she flitted to the walls, only taking the time to roll her eyes at the fact that Jack was-as usual, even though this place was completely different- sitting on the beams above her head, and started running her hands over the intricate markings.  
The other three soon followed, and as North struck up quick conversation with the Yeti's, Sandy started rapidly signing to Jack that there was another old place he had had his eyes on for a while, and Jack really could make a business out of the whole redecorating thing.  
Jack had rolled his eyes as the golden guardian took off to explore, and grinned at Bunny, who was likewise rolling his eyes.  
"Nice job, Frostbite."  
"Ooh, a compliment. I feel honoured!"  
"Yeah yeah, quit bein' sarcastic."  
"Sorry, it's an art form."  
"Sarcasm?"  
"Well, either an art form or a finely honed skill."  
"… Whatever ya say. Ya know, I can tell this place is gonna be a tricky one to travel to with tunnels… All uphill and all that-"  
"Nah, I've tried it. No problem with it."  
Bunny blinked, raising an eyebrow, and tapped his foot.  
"I'll be the judge of that."  
He leapt down, and Jack counted to fourteen before the Pooka appeared again.  
"The judge is impressed."  
"Wow, two compliments. In the same amount of minutes! Must be some kind of record…"  
"… You can be really irritating when ya wanna be."  
"… And you're only just discovering this _now_?"  
Bunny opened his mouth to reply, then closed it again, shaking his head.  
"I'm not even going there. So… Changing the subject. Is this what ya had delivered ta Jamie's?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Yup. Authentic and traditional Japanese hangings, paintings… Pretty much everything I could think of."  
"Well, I gotta say, I _am_ impressed. Im assuming ya're gonna get some of the weapons out of the reach of the elves now then, eh?"  
"Might be a much safer arrangement… I think the fact that the swords are so shiny may have overshadowed he fact that they're also very sharp."  
"Tel me about it. I had ta topple another pyramid of them this morning. They were trying to get to the cupboard we stashed them all in."  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"Man, they must be getting desperate…"  
"Tell me about it- Hey! Tooth? What're ya doin?"  
The Fairy span, grinning.  
"Looking at the pictures. It's like a huge canvas across the entire wall!"  
They had to laugh at how enthusiastic she was, and Jack leapt down, landing in a crouch before straightening up and getting a blast of wind ruffling through his hair.  
"Alright, alright… Jeez…" He shrugged at the other two. "The wind likes to be _overprotective_!"  
Another blast of air in his face, and Bunny snorted.  
"Mate, ya can't beat the wind. Let it go."  
"That's what you think…" Jack muttered, before grinning. "Anyway, if you like that, Tooth, I think you'll like what I did with your room…" He rolled his eyes at the raised eyebrows.  
"Of course I made you rooms. For Moon's sake…"  
He strode to the doorway, then turned back.  
"Well? Are you coming or not?"

North joined the other two as they left the room, and started asking Jack why he called the other Yeti Jim.  
Jack shrugged.  
"Well, first, his name is so long, you really can't say it. And second, just like you always need a Phil, you always need a Jim. Or a Jimmy. And he didn't look like a Jimmy."  
North blinked, then cocked his head, thoughtfully.  
"Is fair point."  
They turned around another corridor, and Jack motioned to one of the rooms.  
"Tooth? Yours is the first. Bunny, yours is on the left, North's is next to it, then Sandy's-Oh, hey Sandy. Where did you get to?"  
Jack blinked as Sandy started signing, and the other guardians went to explore their allocated rooms.  
Jack grinned.  
"Oh, you saw the small indoor pond? Yeah, it's a replica of one I saw a hundred years or so ago in Japan. Down to the blossoms and everything…"  
_Aren't they more Chinese?_  
"Depends-"  
_And the music room? You did not decorate it?_  
"Nah. I thought it looked okay as it is…"  
_It does. Perfect, though I am not surprised._  
Jack laughed.  
"Thanks Sandy… Oh, and when you use the Piano? It echoes throughout the entire place."  
Sandy looked about to fly off and test that, when Jack jumped in front of him.  
"Not the best idea… You know what Tooth can be like…"  
They both grinned at that, and Jack gestured to the room on their left.  
"That room's yours. I know you guys aren't likely gonna spend a lot-well, if any-time here, but I figured what the heck and made them anyway."  
_Thank you._  
Jack shrugged.  
"Don't thank me till you've seen it."  
Then he blinked as he realised that he had heard nothing from Tooth, and span to see the other two guardians peering in the door.  
Jack was about to head over when Bunny motioned for him to stop.  
"No…" he whispered. "She's in over delighted mode… Move it!"  
He blinked then, as North nudged him, and dropped the whisper.  
"She's coming! Fly Frostbite!"  
"You kiddin? The wind is still trying to prove a point!"  
"It cannot be harsh enough to leave you to such fate?" North asked, but before Jack could reply that the wind could be very stubborn, Tooth had shoved past North and flew straight at Jack.  
Jack blinked, then turned and ran, Tooth right behind him.  
"Wind! I'm being serious now… Come on! You know what she's like!"  
He received only a small ruffling of his hair in return, and he groaned, grabbing a corner and spinning himself around it, heading for somewhere he hoped he could evade the ridiculously enthusiastic fairy.  
"Oh, come on… Please?"  
Another slight ruffling, and he glared at the air, spinning around another corner.  
"Great. Thanks a lot!"  
He grabbed his staff, and managed to just avoid Tooth's grasp as he flung himself headfirst through the doorway at the end of the passage.  
The yelp changed into a laugh as he landed on the ice slide that span down two levels, from the top that they had been on, to the lower floor that was a bit lower down the mountain-the monastery having been built on support structures at different levels down a short stretch of the mountain rock, though not on the outer mountain face.  
Tooth flew after him, but seemed unwilling to follow the ice slide down, instead choosing to fly back the way she came and demand that Sandy show her how to get lower down.

The golden guardian looked, understandably, terrified, and directed her back to the training hall, and to a staircase he had found that led to the lower levels.  
They all followed Tooth down, and blinked as they came across a… well. It looked like a mid-air assault course that stretched the entire length of a hall the same size as the training hall. Beams, ropes, nets, bridges, climbing walls and climbing frames, made from wood, all filled the room.  
Looked like Jack had been busier than they had thought…  
Bunny blinked as a paper plane hit his arm, and he opened it to find Jack's handwriting.  
_Is she calm yet?_  
He rolled his eyes.  
"Hey, Tooth, ya feelin a bit calmer?"  
She glared at him.  
"I was only going to give him a hug…"  
"And half squeeze the life outta him as ya never let go."  
"… Maybe. But fine. I'm better now…"  
Bunny gave her a suspicious look, then nodded.  
"Alright Frostbite, she's good."  
"Oh, Thank Moon."  
Jack leapt down from a beam he had been hiding behind, and used a hanging rope to swing himself to the balcony they were standing on.  
He rolled his eyes and sighed as Tooth pulled him into a hug, but it was not as tight as it could have been.  
North gestured to the assault course.  
"You built this?"  
"Well, I designed it. The Yeti's did most of the building. I used some of the older wood from the parts of the monastery that I didn't rebuild. It's large enough as it is. The other rooms on this level I've just left empty. It's only really the ones on the top floor and the outer rooms I've used for anything."  
"What about bottom floor?"  
Jack tried to shrug, but Tooth was still squeezing him, so he resorted to an eye roll.  
"It's quite a small floor. There are only a few rooms, as most of it is the rock that the other two floors is built on. There are a few tunnels hewn into it, but the ones who built the place didn't want to risk making the rock unstable, so just left it and built above it. I just kinda left those rooms until I need them for anything, or for the Yeti's if they need them."  
"Is good planning." North said, then asked about the small outhouses the Yeti's mentioned in passing. "And there are outer houses here?"  
Jack nodded, taking a deep breath as Tooth finally let go.  
"Yeah… Just furnished them into living spaces. Also built insulated corridors to connect them to the main complex."  
Bunny suddenly laughed, mainly at the modest way Jack was speaking about something that most other people would be bragging about.  
"Ya know what, Frostbite? I think I could come ta like it here."  
Tooth agreed with him.  
"Definitely. How long did it take to paint the walls in my room?" she asked, thinking back to the Japanese designs that somehow incorporated teeth and fairies and yet still looked continental.  
Jack shrugged.  
"I kind did the painting in layers… But only a few hours."  
Tooth shook her head.  
"Jack? Do me a favour?"  
"… Yeah?"  
"Redecorate the entire Tooth Palace? I'm bored of green…"  
_

Jack spent the rest of the day flitting backwards and forwards as he answered questions for all of the guardians, who were exploring the place.  
Yes, he figured that he might as well furnish a few more rooms, seeing as Jamie and Cupcake, to name only two, were insisting on coming.  
Yes, the miniature beds were for the fairies, at Baby Tooth's insistence.  
Yes, one of the other rooms on the second floor, that you could get to from a staircase from the end of the corridor where there room were, was the kitchen (this one was North, who, though he tried to hide it, was clearly wondering if that was where Jack stashed the rest of his recipes)  
Yup, there was two living rooms, but he hadn't had the heart to throw out the older furniture.  
Sure, they could stay at the small indoor pond as long as they liked (This was Tooth, who had found the small indoor pond, with the blossoms, trees, statues, benches and everything else and who had fallen in love.) And sure, he'd make her one in the Palace… And no, he was sure the temperature wouldn't be a problem.  
Yeah… yeah… yeah… Yes, for Moon's sake, they could do whatever they liked as long as they didn't get themselves frozen.  
No. No, he was not going to reveal the location of the safe where he kept all of his recipes. No way on Moon North…  
Then, after about half an hour of wheedling and eye rolling, Jack played a quick song on the Piano, and showed them how the sound echoed around the place, the notes overlapping and, thanks to his song choice, harmonising.  
As it got late, Jack eventually asked Bunny why he wasn't obsessing over painting eggs, and the Pooka shrugged.  
"A quick day off here and there never hurt no one, Frostbite."  
"Also known as _'I'm gonna drag you down to help so I can take it easy for now…_' Right?"  
"… Pretty much, yeah."  
"Ya know, if ya had told me that a couple of decades ago…"  
Bunny blinked, then laughed.  
"Wow, times change quick."  
"Tell me about it."

Eventually, they all decided that they might as well stay the night.  
Of course, Sandy left after a few hours, having to catch up with his dreams, and Tooth left early the following morning to check everything was okay at the palace.  
North spent another few hours looking round and chatting with various yeti's that were taking a few days break after the mad dash to get the place built over the last week, before he head back to the Pole.  
Jack managed to rope Bunny into helping him carry most of the weapons from the Pole to his new place, and they spent the day sorting them all out and 'testing out' the assault courses and climbing frames. Jack also stashed orbs at various places around the place, in case he needed a portal for any reason. Bunny head back to the warren that evening, to get back to work, and Jack finally let himself relax in the small pool area. After a while, he felt himself grinning.  
It felt good to have a place of his own…  
_

The following day, Jack was passing through Burgess to say hi to the kids, when he got accosted. He sighed, rolling his eyes, but agreed to take them to see his new home. It was normal for them to spend the entire day out, or at each other's houses, so their parents would not really worry until it got late in the evening.  
One portal jump later and they were all stood in the training hall.  
Jack gave them a quick tour, letting them know the places that they couldn't go because of the cold, and the places that he recommended they went, such as the room with the smaller climbing frames and the small pool area, and let them explore for themselves.  
Of course, it wasn't long before they found the ice slide.  
Jack simply rolled his eyes and filled the bottom of the room with snow so they would have a soft landing, and built up snow railings at the side of it to make it safer.  
A few snowball fight filled hours later, and Jack realised it was getting late. He went to pick up Sophie, who had fallen asleep a couple of hours ago in one of the rooms, and carried her back before opening a portal to Burgess.  
Then he made sure they all got home okay, promising that they could visit again soon, and stayed with Jamie and Sophie for half an hour before taking off to do his snow rounds. Then he blinked as the wind started carrying him towards the Pole.  
"Err… Wind? I was going to go tomorrow anyway…"  
It seemed to give a sigh, and carried him to his own home.  
But Jack had meant what he said. He might have his own home now, but that didn't mean he was going to be at the Pole any less. Or the Warren or the Palace for that matter, though it did feel good to have somewhere of his own.  
And he really needed to talk to Tooth about that pool she wanted…

Jack could tell that the Yeti's were going to be constant companions at his place, seeing as there were so many spare room on the lower level, and some actually lived quite near. He actually got on really well with them, and had told them to come and go as they liked if they needed to stay somewhere or whatever. Sure enough, as he flew in, he found a couple strolling here and there, grunting greetings at him, and he grinned.  
At least things weren't going to be_ too _quiet…

* * *

_**(1)Saya-The name of the sheaths in which Katana are stored. I would go into more detail, but I would probably bore you, as those kinds of weapons are a passion of mine.  
Of course, if you do want to know a little more, I'd be happy to tell you, so just leave me a note in a review!  
The same goes for the colours of the paints. They are traditional Japanese shades of colours, and for more info, please ask and I'll gladly tell you what I know :D **_

**So… Jack now has his own home… What do you think of it?  
And hopefully the descriptions of the monastery were okay? If not, please review and I will send you a PM with more detail so you can properly get a picture…**

**Oh, and does Jack build Tooth a small Japanese pool area in the palace?  
Do his other spirit friends visit? (I have some plans already regarding them, but I'm sure I could do another chapter…)**

***starts jumping with inspiration overload and squealing*  
Wow! There is so much I can do with this!  
*stops jumping as small trickle of nightmare sand appears and glares at the shadows*  
I'm happy Pitch, so shoo.  
*sighs as I get surrounded by nightmares, and my army of fairies, elves and yeti's arrives armed with cookie blasters… Pulls out own blaster, and grins maniacally, giving everyone a snappy salute*  
**

**So… please review and let me know what you thought, (hoping all the Japanese referencing wasn't off-putting?) and hopefully I will be able to update much faster this time…  
If I can get rid of Pitch that is…**

**Raven xx**

***clicks safety off of cookie blaster and runs into the battle…*  
Oh, hey Carwa111! Here, have a cream pie! **


	31. The Worst Fall

_**Well, it involves a landslide, an avalanche and a deep ravine… oh, and the Grand Canyon, so no, you probably don't…**_**  
This is expanding on the small section in chapter three, where Jack mentions what he considered his worst 'fall' to be. Someone requested for me to say what happened, and how could I not deliver? No matter how delayed it is… And even if I kinda cheated and used Ice black in this one...  
Enjoy!**

* * *

Jack was whistling idly as he flew in the window of Santoff Claussen. Then he froze as he caught sight of an, unfortunately, familiar figure.  
"What are you doing here?"  
The figure, in black jeans and a black leather jacket, span round, a smirk on his face.  
"Well well, Frost. Long-time no see."  
Jack glared at Ice Black.  
"I said, what are you doing here?"  
"Just… visiting. I wanted to give you fair warning. Don't try to stop the inevitable Frost. If I can sneak into one of the most heavily fortified places in the world, I can defeat a scrawny brat like you."  
Jack gave a smirk of his own.  
"Sneak in? Oh, and I assume you used the windows? News flash, Ice, they trigger alarms."  
He blinked, then laughed.  
"It does not matter. I will have gone by the time anyone else gets here. But I'm warning you Jack, don't try to fight me-"  
Jack snorted.  
"Yeah, because that's likely."  
He quickly shot a blast from his staff, and Ice Black cursed as he ducked to avoid it, retaliating with a blast of ice.  
North chose this moment to burst in, followed by Yeti's, and Ice Black sneered.  
"Be seeing you, Frost."  
He leapt from the window, forming a slide of ice, and vanished into the snow.  
Jack glared after him, and felt a hand on his shoulder.  
"Jack? Was that Ice Black?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Yup. Wanted to warn me he's going to attempt to take over the season of Winter."  
North blinked.  
"But that is-"  
"A long story…" Jack said, with a sigh, and turned back to the room. "And I think all of you need to hear it."

Jack sighed as he sat on the beams, the rest of the guardians sat ready to listen, and began speaking.  
"Well, I first met Ice Black almost a century ago. He'd decided to rename himself after he realised he had an affinity with the newer kinds of ice that formed on the new roads... But that's beside the point..."  
Jack found himself thinking back to what had happened even as he told the other guardians.  
"I'd just recovered from a run-in with Fall's spirits..."  
_

Jack cursed as he dropped slightly, his hold on his staff having been temporarily weakened.  
He may have recovered from his injuries and the beating, but he wasn't fully back to his normal strength yet...  
He was flying over a mountain range, and frowned as he sensed something, letting the wind fly him closer to the mountain, where he caught sight of a couple of people-clearly Sherpa's- trying to climb the snowy rock-face.  
Problem was, there was a trail of ice, flowing unnaturally up the side of the mountain, growing and expanding, which was heading right for a snow overhang.  
Jack realised what whoever was controlling the ice was up to, just as the shelf gave a resounding shudder, and cracked.  
Within seconds, an avalanche of snow and ice and rock was heading towards the two climbers.  
Instinct had him flying down, before he realised that he couldn't help if they could not see or touch or hear him...  
He landed, feet planted in the snow, and blinked at the huge wave that was hurtling towards him, before he held his staff out.  
This was gonna hurt...  
With a yell, he sent out a wave of energy from the staff, and gasped as it drained him... But it held the avalanche back...  
Just long enough for several yeti's to arrive on the scene.  
Jack locked eyes with one of them, and gestured without words for them to protect the two humans. It was clear that the yeti knew he was in trouble, but he listened to Jack's warning, and gave a nod as they grabbed the humans.  
Jack sighed, nodding in return, before he let the wall of snow fall.  
The wind was fast enough to get him to the fringes of the cascade, but he was still caught on the edges of it, and found himself tossed and thrown about for several moments until he finally came to a rest piled several feet down in a snow drift.  
He lay there for quite some time, just letting the snow revitalise him, before he found himself getting hauled out of the snow by a huge furry hand.  
He blinked as he took in the yeti, and sighed, flopping down.  
"Thanks..." he whispered. A small growl in return, and Jack realised that he was being asked if he was okay.  
"I'm fine. I'm a winter spirit... A few hours in the snow and I'll be good as new..."  
More growling, and Jack shook his head, apologetic.  
"Sorry... I don't speak Yeti..."  
The yeti gestured some more, and Jack figured he was saying thank you for helping.  
"No problem... "  
They exchanged nods, and the yeti left, much to Jack's relief.  
He was perfectly fine on his own... he hated people having to bother with him.  
_

"Yes, North, that was Jim. That was why I was so happy to see him when he volunteered to give me a hand a few weeks ago. Hadn't seen him since then… Wait, where was I?"  
"You'd just stopped an avalanche?" Bunny said, as if he was still taking it in, and Jack blinked.  
"Right. Anyway, I lay there for a while before…"  
_

He way there for almost an hour before he sensed something else, and pulled himself to his feet, gripping his staff, as another spirit hopped from a slide of ice, glaring at him.  
"You ruined my fun..."  
"You have a ridiculous idea of fun."  
The spirit blinked, taking in the staff, and raised an eyebrow.  
"Would I be correct in thinking I am speaking with Jack Frost? Ah yes, the glacier cold eyes... Dead giveaway, if I may."  
Jack glared at him, and smirked as the spirits own smirk fell at the look.  
Good. He hadn't lost it then...  
"And you are?"  
"Well, that is a good question. I, until recently, went by one name. Now I go by another."  
"So give me either."  
"Very well. You can call me Ice Black."  
"Doesn't look like I need to call you anything, seeing as I am leaving and all..."  
"Ah, but one moment... What makes you think we're done here?"  
"Because I said so."  
"But I did not..."  
Jack gasped as his feet fell from under him, and the ice melted, causing him to tumble into the crack in the mountain side.  
The ravine's edges were covered in sharp rocks and shards of ice, and by the time Jack had tumbled to the bottom, landing in a snow drift, he was covered in cuts, scrapes and blood.  
He groaned slightly, as he pulled himself to his feet.  
He glared at Ice Black as the spirit slid next to him, neatly leaping from a slide of ice.  
"My, my. I never expected it to be that easy."  
"Expected what to be easy?"  
"Why, defeating you of course!"  
"... And why would you want to do that?"  
Ice Black stared at him, then laughed.  
"Oh, you mean... you mean you do not know? Oh, but that is precious..."  
He laughed again, before shaking his head.  
"Have you not heard the rumours that have now been shown to be virtual fact? You're impressive display-holding back an entire avalanche?- simply cemented the knowledge."  
"What knowledge?"  
"Why, that you are meant to be one of the most winter spirits to ever walk the earth, Frost. That staff? Blessed with the power of the Man in Moon? It is said to be a core of power... One of the strongest there is. You clearly have no idea of the power you wield... But I? I could use that power..."  
Jack had gripped the staff tighter at that, and now had it clenched in his fist.  
"I'm sorry," he said, interrupting the other spirit, "But you seem to be under the delusion that you are getting the staff... My staff..."  
"You think you can defeat me?"  
Jack smirked at him.  
"No. I know I can..."  
_

"And yeah, long story short, we fought for a bit, I got to the top of the ravine with a combination of the wind and acrobaticey, gymnasticey moves, we continued fighting for a bit... He turned and ran. I followed. I mentioned the Grand Canyon? That's just because I wasn't... well, wasn't in the best shape... Lost him, lost my staff, dropped there... woke up enough to grab it and get somewhere cold... Yeah. The end."  
The other guardians were staring at him, and Bunny eventually spoke.  
"Okay, so let me get this straight. Ya had just been attacked by spirits, but still managed to stop an avalanche. Then defeated another spirit, who was intent on stealing your staff because he believed you were one of the most powerful winter spirits, and the staff was the core of that power? Oh, whilst being really badly injured?"  
Jack shifted slightly.  
"Pretty much..."  
"But an avalanche? Just how powerful are ya Frostbite?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Sometimes, I just wish I knew... But yeah. I only ran into Ice Black once more since then, before today, and that was about thirty years ago, when I had to stop him from covering an entire city in a huge ice storm and covering the roads with ice... Iceman tipped me off about that. Seems he's still after me though."  
"Why?"  
This was Tooth, and Jack shrugged, jumping and landing on the floor, before perching, with his legs crossed, on the arm of the sofa.  
"Because he thinks that with the staff, he would be able to control winter."  
"Surely it, or rather, you, cannot be that powerful though, Jack?"  
North asked, and Jack shifted, sheepishly.  
"I've never really pushed myself to the limits... I came close with Pitch, but I've only twice used more than that. With the avalanche, then with controlling a really bad storm a century or so ago. I've always sensed something beyond my reach within the staff, and I've never dared try to reach for it."

They were all silent at that, and Jack eventually sighed.  
"I'm gonna have to go warn Iceman... He can warn the others that will need to know. The I'll see if I can find a way to deal with-"  
"Hey! What do you mean _you_-"  
"You? Alone? Not likely-"  
"Not bloody likely, mate- "  
Sandy had starts signing at the same time as the others had all spoke, in unison, and they all stared at one another, before North spoke up.  
"You cannot risk taking this spirit alone, Jack."  
Jack blinked.  
"But... But I can-"  
"No buts', Frostbite." Bunny said, interrupting, "We're not letting ya do it alone, and that's final."  
Jack looked around at them all and sighed, grinning.  
"You can all be very pushy when you want to be..."  
_

An hour later, and they had a plan of sorts. Jack had head off to find Iceman, and also to try and find out what he could about Ice Black's current whereabouts, and, after a while, Bunny whistled softly.  
"I never realised that Frostbite was so powerful..."  
North sighed.  
"It is well known amongst the winter spirits that it is not a good idea to get him angry. I had only found out his information recently. It appears that most of the winter spirits hold him in high esteem, but are also wary of him. After all, he was young when he was turned, and to have someone so young with so much power and responsibility…"  
"He's that... wow..." Tooth wasn't quite sure what to say to that, and frowned. "Maybe that was another reason he wanted to be alone... It couldn't have been easy. But he's not a child. Surely they can see that?"  
"We did not until recently Tooth." North said.  
The others nodded, likewise trying to absorb all this new information, and to think around this spirit that had threatened their fellow guardian, and North eventually sighed, giving a small smile.  
"Well, at least we can be sure that he will not be facing this alone this time."

* * *

**Yes, Ice Black is finally coming into this more! Though he will not be majorly coming into it for another few chapters yet :D  
Anyway, please review and let me know what you think! (I know it's not my best chapter ever, so sorry about that...)**

**Raven xx**

**Me:*About to leave, then spots a trail of nightmare sand.* Damn it Pitch! What now?!  
Pitch: I'm still being left out of this fic…  
Me: Yeah, well, Ice Black is more important at the moment.  
Pitch: Well, we shall see about that-  
Ice Black: Yes! I have finally got the power to break into an Authors Note!  
Me: Oh, shut up… *uses the force to stop him talking, then turns to Pitch* Right, you might not have much to do in the fic, but the least you could do is keep this guy from my footnotes?  
Pitch: Why would I do that?  
Me: *gets out mobile and dials a number* Oh, Hey Jack! Yeah, I need a favour- *stops as Pitch glares and vanishes, dragging Ice Black behind him* Nope, don't worry. It's sorted… Yeah, sure, thanks!  
*Grins and flexes fingers* I like being the author…  
Yoda: Much power does the position have.  
Me: Oh moon, what are you doing here again? It's not even your universe!  
Yoda: Much power the **_**force**_** does have…  
Darth Vader: Yes, but the power of the dark side is more- Wait, this is not our fandom…?  
Me: No, but I guess I am a major fan and- *sighs and face-palms* Till next time then guys, now I gotta sort this mess out and- No! Vader, Put the elf down… NO! THE ELF HAS THE LIGHTSABER!  
*pulls out my own, shrugging at the blank looks* Hey, I'm the author. If I want a light saber, I can have a light saber… Now get that elf!  
Me, Vader, Yoda and… Batman? : *Run after the elf…***

**(Yeah, I know… I have travelled further down the path of insanity, but man, it's fun :D )**


	32. Another Overdue Catchup Session

**Me: *Dangling the elf that stole the lightsaber* Cheers Bats. Those bat-ropes really helped. Tell Robin I said Hi, would ya?  
Batman: Of course Raven. Goodbye Vader. We really must talk more about this force you speak of-  
Me: Guys? Crossed fandoms and universes and paradoxes and all that?  
The Doctor: *poking his head from the Tardis which has just appeared* And I will not be happy…  
Batman: You are right. Very well, farewell. *leaps through portal*  
The Doctor: Good. Hey Raven.  
Me: Hey doc.  
Vader: You are the one who controls time?  
Yoda: Much trouble I sense in the near future…  
Ice Black: *Runs through a door and past us into another door*  
Pitch Black: *runs past us after him* Ice! Get back here and- Oh, Raven! You had better put me in the fic! After the rubbish I had to put up with, with some guys asking me if these droids were the ones I was looking for-  
Vader: Droids?  
Pitch Black: Yep. Some guys named Kenobi and Skywalker-  
Vader: Kenobi and Skywalker!? *runs out of the door*  
Pitch: *shrugs, and continues to run after Ice Black, along with several elves who are following for no apparent reason*  
Me: *Facepalms* Great. Now I've messed up the timeline of Star wars… *sigh* And not a word from you Yoda…  
Yoda: But-  
Me: Not. A. Word. Anyway, please enjoy the chappie whilst I go and sort this mess out…  
_**

**Oh, and a delayed thanks to Caracul, Dark Inu Fan, Chaosguardian13 and NiaJayne for the faves/follows And thanks to a guest reviewer, Sylvery, for all the reviews! Oh, and to fangirly too! Glad you're enjoying, and hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Jack sighed as Shady dragged him from his-for the first time in a week- doze, in front of the small pool in the monastery, for a shadow trip.  
"Look, I really don't know what you think you're doing but-" he cut off as they travelled, then continued, "But I don't see why I have to… to…"  
He drifted off as he took in the spirits whom they had landed in the midst of, and it turned to a delighted laugh and grin as Clover pulled him into a hug.  
"Sorry Jack, ya never seem to have any decent amount of spare time, so we decided to make some."  
Jack eagerly hugged her back, before turning to the others.  
Gale, a young, blonde summer spirit-dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with the sunshine care-bear on it- who looked to be in her late teens and Flow, the small Fall spirit, both leapt at him, tackling him into hugs as Iceman kept his distance, laughing at his friends misfortune, as did Lily, who was struggling to breathe she was laughing so hard… especially when Jack ended up getting knocked into a tree.  
"Guys? I'm calling in a favour…?"  
"Sorry Jackyboy, I'm not getting in the way of that…" Iceman said, grinning.  
"Traitor!" Jack called back, laughing and managed to get to his feet, hugging the other two spirits properly.  
"Hey guys. What ya doing here?"  
Gale grinned, leaning back against a tree, and grinned.  
"Well, Iceman, Clover and Shady have all got to see you properly since you got the big promotion. Me, Flow and Lily kinda felt left out."  
"I've seen Flow and Lily…"  
"Twice," she said with an eye-roll, "And you were too bloody dizzy and hurt for it to count the first time. And you only stayed for about an hour at Christmas."  
"… Okay, fair point. But I saw Gale when I picked up my stuff?"  
"It doesn't count Jack. And you know it."  
Jack grinned as she flexed her fingers, and held his hands up in surrender.  
"Okay, okay, it didn't count! I have tried to visit, but I've been so busy with annoying everyone else, I just haven't had the time."  
Gale grinned.  
"Yeah. We heard about April Fool… Careful Jack, word is he's planning to get you back for that. If I were you, when the next April Fool's day comes around, I'd hide and not come out."  
"But where's the fun in that?"

After about an hour, Jack had decided it would be easier to just relocate to the Warren, much to the other's apprehension, and he rolled his eyes.  
"It's fine. Just don't go within a fifty foot radius of the paint crazed Kangaroo."  
Then he blinked. When had it become habit to just hang out at either the Pole or the Warren?  
He'd been doing it for a while now… Plus it was nearer than the monastery.  
He was still rather surprised that Bunny didn't mind it.  
Ah well, he wasn't gonna complain. It made life much more interesting.  
They had been sat in a small circle on the outskirts of the warren, lounging in or against trees, chatting and laughing as they caught up, when a small egg messenger appeared. Jack rolled his eyes as he unfurled it, and laughed as he read the note.

"_Oi, no distractions, snowstorms, raucous battles, duels or interfering. If Pitch is there, tell him to bugger off._

_Bunny."_

Jack hastily scrawled one back with the small pencil that the eggs always carried.

"_Chill Kangaroo, just met with some old friends. No danger, no threats and I'm feeling all nice and friendly, with a hefty dose of self-preservation ranting inside my head, which is gonna prevent me from the '_distractions, snowstorms, raucous battles, duels and interfering'_, as you so put it.  
We'll be gone before ya know it._

_Jack"_

The little egg ran off with the note, and the others grinned, Gale shaking her head slightly.  
"Ya know, if you had told me half a decade ago that Jack Frost would be friendly enough with Aster Bunnymund to be able to hang in the warren in the run-up to Easter, I would have dragged them to see old Whacko."  
Jack shrugged, considering,  
"Hey, now be fair. For the spirit of insanity and the like, he's actually pretty normal…"  
"Until you get him talking about the humans and their tendency towards odd things." Flow countered, and Ice man grinned.  
"She's right."  
"Isn't she always?"  
Jack asked, leading to eye rolling.  
"Suck up..." Ice man muttered, and Jack shrugged.  
"Nope, just don't feel like being either trapped in a whirlwind of leaves or punched on the arm."  
"Punched?"  
"Hey! Her punches hurt! And that's saying something..."  
Gale frowned at him.  
"Yeah, it is. When the hell did your life get so interesting, and subsequently painful, Jack?"  
"... Around about the time that Ice Black decided to go crazy"_  
_Iceman glared at nothing, and Jack sighed.  
"Leave it, Iceman, it ain't your fault."  
"I-But he..."  
"He isn't the same person you knew..."  
"I know..."  
Clover pulled him into a hug, and Gale turned to Jack.  
"We've heard there's been an increase in Ice activity. At first, people suspected you, but after they heard about the guardianship and everything, there's no doubt in anyone's mind that it has to be Ice..."  
"Yeah... I still have no idea where he is though. Even the Yeti's have heard nothing-"  
"You asked the Yeti's?"  
"Well, North did."  
Flow laughed.  
"Ya know, the fact that you're saying this as though it's so normal really shows how much you've changed Jack..."  
Jack blinked, then grinned, shrugging.  
"You got a problem with the new Jack?"  
She laughed,  
"Nope. I find I like the new Jack more. Far more sociable for one thing... And with much more fashion sense."  
"Ah yes, now about that outfit you had Shady get me to wear?"  
Lilly giggled.  
"I still have the photo Shady gave me."  
"He gave out photos!?" Jack asked, looking mortified, and they all burst out laughing.  
Iceman grinned.  
"Yup. Me and Clover have ours stuck up on the wall. Quite a few of our friends have commented on it-"  
He yelped as Jack leapt at him and pulled him into a headlock.  
The girls stayed out of the way as Iceman made countless attempts to actually get Jack, before the ice spirit finally gave up.  
"Alright, you win! As always…"  
Jack let him up, both of them grinning, before they sat down, laughing as Jack got whacked across the head by Lily as she always did when he said or did something dumb, ridiculous or just generally irritating.  
"Hey, when did your whacks get so hard, Lils?"  
"Since ya missed me…" she said, as sweet and innocent as she could manage, which had Jack grinning.  
"Ain't gonna work on me. Damn, you're just like Sophie-"  
"Sophie?"  
"Jamie's little sister. Also my great, great, great however so many great's niece, descended from my sister. Not that I knew it till a couple of months ago."  
They all stared, and he rolled his eyes.  
"You really don't need to look so shocked. Actually, I think she'd probably like to meet you. You'd get on well with her, Lil."  
"That could be fun!" Lily said, actually looking forward to meeting the humans she had heard about, and Jack sighed.  
"I had to open my mouth…"  
_

The next hour or so was taken up with laughing and chatting as they recalled different things, and then they spent an hour just lounging around, just enjoying each other's company, with the odd comment or joke.  
It was just coming to evening when Jack received another egg message.  
He sighed as he unfurled it, then rolled his eyes.

_Hey Frostbite, I'd appreciate a hand with the painting when ya get the chance? It seems the eggs and whatever miss ya.  
Bunny_

Jack laughed at the shock on the others faces.  
"Y-you... Bunnymund lets you... Paint...?"  
"Calm down Iceman, ya might melt." Jack grinned, then yelped as he got whacked across the head again. "Ow! I don't think that was necessary…"  
"Oh quit complaining. You get to paint Bunnymund's easter eggs?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"It's just because last Easter, we had some trouble with Pitch, and I was left painting them a few days before Easter. Not an easy task, I'm telling ya..."  
"... I'll bet." Iceman said, with a low whistle, and Shady snorted.  
"Tell me about it. From what I heard from Tooth, he slept for a solid week afterwards..."  
"...I was only six days, actually." Jack said, crossing his arms, then cracked under Shady's gaze.  
"Fine, six and a half, but I was only dozing for the rest of the afternoon!"

They broke up about half an hour later, and Jack promised to meet them again after Easter, or told them they could visit his place whenever they liked, seeing as Shady knew how to get there.  
They also promised to keep him up to date on anything they hear about the Ice increases, odd events or anything on Ice Black, as Jack still had not been able to find any link to the ice spirit.  
Jack was still grinning after he had given them hugs and they had made their way out, leaving him to turn to Shady.  
"You're amazing, you know that right?"  
Shady smiled, letting Jack pull him into a hug.  
"What're friends for? I'll let ya get going to the crazed Kangaroo?"  
"Sure. See you soon?"  
"Count on it. Oh, and you know I said -Moon, a couple of years ago now- about how you only had four people to turn to? Now that I've met Gale, Flow and Lily properly, I guess I should probably add them to the list, huh?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Yep. And you're keeping a list?"  
"Well, mentally."  
"… Whatever ya say Pan."  
"Pan?"  
"You did say could call you that."  
"Well… Yeah, but-"  
"I'm joking. Always has been and always will be Shady. Hey, do the councils call you by your full name?"  
Shady grinned.  
"Yup, and you should see them trying to pronounce it. Makes the whole thing worth-while."  
"Mind recording it for me?"  
"No problem… As long as you find a way to use the footage to embarrass them?"  
"You see, that might be one of the reasons why they all hate me."  
"Maybe. But it's one of the reasons why _we_ all _like_ you."  
"Ah... Okay then."

Jack whistled softly as he head to find Bunny, after Shady had left a few minutes later, and bit back a laugh at the crazed look on the Pooka's face as he painted the eggs.  
He sat down nearby, and grabbed a paintbrush, letting an egg hop into his hand, and rolling his eyes at the relieved and grateful look Bunny shot him in greeting.  
"Thank Moon. Thought I'd never get 'em done..."  
"You never think that, yet you always do. Anyway, what're we waiting for?"  
Jack grinned as the tension in the Pooka's posture loosened as he got him talking as they painted, and he gave himself a mental victory.  
He _was_ the guardian of fun after all...

* * *

**Me: *Drags Vader back into the room, lecturing him* And that is why you never mess up the time space continuum and… Oh, hey Guys. What did you all think of the chapter?  
The spirits in this chapter will definitely be coming in more, so please let me know what you think of them! (Just a reminder that Lily is the OC of Mae, a regular reader and reviewer…)  
And would anyone else like the burgess kids to meet the spirits? It's been requested, and I think it's an awesome idea…  
Anyway, hope you enjoyed! (And the next chapters will be better... Promise!)**

**Raven xx**

**(Oh, and hope you like how used Lily, Mae!)  
_**

**Vader: *Grumbling* Oh yeah, you can be nice when you wish to be-  
Pitch Black: Yeah, tell me about it…  
Ice Black: Aha! I am again free in an authors note and-  
Me: *uses the force to shut him up.* Mate, that never gets old.  
Vader: Yes, unlike you Master Yoda.  
Yoda: Well, when 900 years old you reach, look this good you will not, hmm?  
The Doctor: Sorry, But I'm living proof that that is _so very_ not true. Allonsy, mon amis! *vanishes in Tardis*  
Me: That was random…  
Yoda: *Grumbles* Much trickery there is with remaining un-aged…  
Uther Pendragon: Sorcery!  
Me: *facepalms* Okay! New rule, only two fandoms present at a time!  
Uther: *vanishes*  
Vader: Well, that is no fun- No! The Elf stole my light saber again!  
Me: (in a conspirital whisper to the audience)Don't you just want to hear him say it in canon?  
Me, Vader and Yoda: *Chase the elf*  
Me: Till next time guys! (And yup, I'm afraid this is probably going to become a regular footnote thing… Ya don't have to read if you don't want to :D Hey, any fandoms you guys want brought in?) Oh, and in my mind's eye, I'm using the tenth doctor, because Tennant just rocks. Sorry Matt!  
Matt Smith: *shrugs* It's fine. I get it a lot…  
Me: *rolls eyes and feels marginally guilty* See ya guys!  
_**

**Oh, and thanks to StellaCartoonlover for faving and following my other rotg fic, Tortured Memories, and to rats xp for faving me!**


	33. Taking a Break, Guardian Style

**Me: (Again having caught the elf) *tapes it into a fed ex box and throws it through a portal to Santoff Claussen* Yo! North?! Delivery! Oh, hey Phil…Ya know those balls should have been painted blue right? *grins and closes portal as Phil groans*  
Vader: You know, that elf would make a good apprentice to the Dark Side…  
Me: Oh moon, please no! THE UNIVERSE WOULD BE DESTROYED FROM THE SHOCKWAVES THAT WOULD RIPPLE FROM SUCH A HORRIFYING ARRANGEMENT!  
Vader: *raising an eyebrow though you can't see it beneath his mask* Very well, the idea has been scrapped… Now you, on the other hand, would make an even finer-  
Me: Oh, don't even go there… Aww, look. Yoda's having a nap… Let's just keep the noise down, so he can rest… And so that these guys can enjoy the chapter in peace! Hope you enjoy guys! This is just a little calm chappie, with some fun and general… well, fun… ness  
Vader: How very eloquent-  
Me: *Points light saber threateningly* Don't even go there… *glare suddenly turns to smile* Enjoy guys, and this was written in a very short space of time, as I wanted no further delays in updates, so I sincerely apologise for any spelling or grammatical errors caused by my want to provide all of you with a new chapter before my next exam tomorrow, which I fully intend to actually revise for... *smirks, then mutters* Tell me that was in-eloquent Vader...  
_**

**Oh, and thanks to Hadas4, sparkalie, AngetianPrincess18 and JackFrostLover1324 for the faves/follows!**

* * *

Jack sighed. Bunnymund was going into overworking craze again, and it wasn't looking good.  
For one thing, he'd already pretty much finished painting the eggs he needed, with over two weeks left till Easter. And then he would just go overboard by a ridiculous amount, have Tooth on his back for hiding too much chocolate, and have too many left over…  
And for another thing, he had not moved from that spot for nearly fourteen hours. Jack knew that because he had seen him like it for at least three hours, whilst he helped paint, before he had left and returned, only to be told by the eggs that he hadn't moved.  
It was getting ridiculous, and Jack knew it was down to him to get the Pooka doing something other than just sitting.  
But how to do it…  
One of the eggs chattered lightly, and Jack blinked.  
"Hey, I'm not _crazy_! That's next to saying 'hey, come take me to old whacko!'"  
It chattered again.  
"Okay, fair point, but even that wasn't as crazy as throwing snowballs at _the Easter Bunny_, just over a week _before Easter_! Especially when said bunny is eight bloody feet tall!"  
Chattering…  
"Oh, fine… nearer seven. Whatever! No way am I risking throwing snowballs at him…"

Jack sighed, making a snowball.  
Damn the eggs. Damn their arguments. Damn his instinctual love of anything irritating…  
He took a few seconds to re-evaluate the life choices that had brought him to this moment, then sighed. If only he had stayed in bed that morning…  
Ah well. Might as well get it over with.  
THUMP.  
Bunny literally froze as the snowball collided with the back of his head, then shook it off and very gently put down the egg and paintbrush he was holding. Very gently.  
Jack winced. Oh, this was so very much not good… So soooooo very much not good...  
Bunny got to his feet, then very slowly span to face Jack, arms crossed, and a blank expression on his face.  
"Jack Frost-"  
At the use of his _name_, Jack blinked, holding up his hands in a placating way and backing away a step.  
"Okay, now, it wasn't my idea. It was-"  
"It was a snowball, chucked at my head…"  
"The eggs made me!"  
"The eggs made you. Right."  
"What? Oh, bloody typical. The one time it wasn't me, and… Ah what the hell." He formed another and threw it, hitting Bunny on the shoulder.  
The Pooka blinked, then his eyes narrowed.  
"Right."  
He grabbed an egg bomb, and Jack sighed.  
Brilliant. Ah well, at least he was taking a break…  
Apparently, the wind had thought it was mean to throw snowballs. Or it just enjoyed watching Jack ducking and diving from the Pooka. Either way, Jack was left to make dozens of snowballs in the trees, and leapt up, right next to one.  
Thus the great pre-easter (or preaster) snow-bomb, warren war began.

The entire afternoon, and well into the night, was taken up with the violent exchanges, at irregular intervals, of blasts and explosions. Jack had no idea where Bunny was getting his constant stream of egg bombs-or paint grenades-from, but he was. And he had even upgraded to throwing snowballs that were so fine and powdery that they exploded as soon as the wind gave them a little nudge, meaning they could cover the entire Pooka with a fine white powder whenever he got a really decently times shot in.  
Jack came to be very familiar with the trees that day, and actually started forming a mental mind-map of the area, for future… Problems? Yes, let's go with that, which he might encounter.  
Bunny, on the other hand, knew exactly what the winter spirit was doing- pretty much forcing him to have a break- but his pride would not allow him to say no, and he decided to just go with it. With constant supplies of egg bombs and paint grenades-that he had stashed around the area for such an occasion as this- he found himself actually enjoying himself, and realised he would have to thank the younger guardian… after he had exhausted his supplies of course. It was just reaching dawn when he had an epiphany.  
Wait! He had more ammunition at the Pole…  
With a grin, he threw a messenger egg at Jack, and vanished into a tunnel.  
Jack caught the egg, and read the short note.  
_Why waste all _my _supplies? North has more… See ya there, ya conniving little ankle biter.  
_Jack blinked. _Ankle Biter?_ Oh, that was it. Bunnymund was so going down…  
_

North blinked as Bunny popped up in the middle of his study, shouted something about needing ammunition because Jack had forced him to take a break, and ran out into the workshop.  
North pieced it all together just as Jack arrived, and got something about 'no-one calls me ankle biter…' before the younger guardian also ran out, shouting. "ASTER BUNNYMUND! YOU ARE GOING DOWN!"  
North face-planted the table.  
Why him? Why the pole?  
Then he grinned… Seemed Jack had actually done a good job of making the Pooka take a break… Why not use it to his advantage?  
The grin got even larger as Phil entered the room, and North got to his feet.  
"Phil? We are taking a stand!"  
The yeti growled, and head butted the wall.  
You didn't need to be an expert in yeti speak to see what he was saying.  
"Why me…?" Head-butt… "Why me…?" Head-butt… "This is going to end badly…."  
North patted him on the back.  
"Oh, it will be fine! Now, we need…"  
He reeled off a list, and Phil sighed.  
Moon help them, they were going up against Bunnymund and… he gulped. Jack Frost.  
Yes, Moon help them all.

Jack glared at Bunnymund, and Bunnymund glared at Jack. Clearly at a stalemate, they were internally debating which of them should throw the first projectile of the second bout.  
Then both blinked as North appeared, surrounded by Yeti's, all armed with buckets of cookies, cookie dough blasters, glitter grenades and elves swinging above them with glue.  
"Jack, Bunny." North clicked the safety off of his cookie dough blaster. "My home. I get to fight for it. Phil! Attack!"  
Jack and Bunny instinctively dove out of the way, and end up behind the same workbench.  
Jack glared at him.  
"Let's go to the Pole… Where there is a, more often than not, sugar high Santa Claus who has a weapons room and an army at his disposal."  
Bunny shrugged.  
"Fine, next time we go Tooth Palace."  
"With the Tooth Fairy who can be ridiculously terrifying when she wants to be?"  
"You'd just have to smile at her for Moon's sake."  
"No. Hell no. Good idea, but hell no all the same."  
Jack blinked, and threw up a shield of ice as a glitter glue grenade exploded next to them, and managed to do so just in time as the mixture collided with the outside of the shield.  
"Neat trick…" Bunny said, glancing over the table.  
"Thanks. Team up?"  
"Sounds good to me."  
They both leapt over the table, and started throwing snowballs and egg bombs at the yeti's.  
A few minutes later, and Jack found himself bombarded with elves. They were on him before he could throw up a shield, and his hoody was plastered with glue and glitter and cookie dough within seconds, before the elves took off.  
The yeti's all froze, staring at him, and Jack blinked, before returning the looks.  
"I liked that hoody. I liked that Hoody a lot…"  
Bunny gave a small grin.  
"This is gonna be good," he said, conversationally, to the Yeti who had been about to blast him with cookie dough, and the yeti gave a small growl, before sidling away.  
Jack very carefully tugged off his hoody, revealing a black vest top which, combined with his black trackies, made Phil face palm.  
Great. Now Jack was going Rambo-mode…  
Then he gave a huff, threw his hands up in a sigh, and threw Jack a cookie blaster.  
"Go make hell."  
Jack grinned.  
"With pleasure."  
With that, Chaos resumed. Snowballs and cookies and egg bombs came at the yeti's from every direction, and North sighed. Now he would have to bring out the big guns… literally…  
"Boris!" he called, Phil having decided to simply lounge and film the entire thing, "Bring out the cookie monsters!"  
Bunny and Jack shared a look. This was bad. This was very bad…  
"Frostbite! You get the CM's, I'll hold them off!"  
"Done!"

An hour later, and there was called a surrender.  
North had decided enough was enough, and had thrown a white elf in the air. Well, it wasn't his fault he didn't have a flag…  
"Ok, you win!"  
Jack straightened up from where he had been crouched- snowballs flying, a cookie blaster in one hand and three paint grenades being juggled in the other- and raised an eyebrow.  
"Wasn't that a given?"  
Bunny sighed, slotting his egg bombs back into place-from where Jack had covered him as he returned to the warren to restock- and rolled his eyes.  
"Ya know, one of these days, we'll have to get Tooth and Sandy, then it'll be the four of us against you."  
Jack considered that, then grinned.  
"I look forward to it…"  
"Of course you do… Now, shall we continue?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Sure. Where?"  
"My place has been ruined, North's place has been ruined…"  
"And now it's my turn? Brilliant…" he gave North a snappy salute.  
"Nicely done North."  
"Thank you. Orb?"  
Jack caught the two North threw at him, and grinned.  
"Cheers. Good luck with the clean-up."  
North grinned, then glared at Phil.  
"Not me you should be wishing luck to…"  
Jack winced, and gave Phil a wink. Suddenly, a wave of snow swept in, melting in places and clearing up paint and glue, then sweeping everything else onto one of the huge workbenches, before the snow vanished out of the window again.  
"Cheers for the blaster Phil!"  
The Yeti gave him a grateful growl, and Jack opened a portal, whistling as he leapt through.  
Bunny blinked at North, then shrugged.  
"Who knew, eh mate?"  
"Indeed. And you are on break?"  
Bunny frowned.  
"He threw a snowball at me."  
North blinked.  
"Whilst you were painting?"  
Bunny nodded, and North gave a low whistle.  
"Is bravest sprit I know."  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"True enough… Catch ya later."  
He vanished into a tunnel, and North sighed.  
"Well, that was fun…" he said, to nothing in particular, and the yeti's all looked at him, then at each other, before turning back to their tasks.  
Okay, now for the _sugar-free_ cookies…

Bunny hopped out of the tunnel, in the training hall in the monastery, and blinked when he saw Jack spinning a fighting staff like a baton.  
Then he grinned… This was gonna be fun.  
He caught the one Jack threw to him, and rolled his eyes.  
"Ya sure Frostbite? Ya look tired…"  
"Says the kangaroo that has been up at least thirty hours straight…"  
"Fair point. Usual rules?"  
"Of course…"  
The usual rules were best out of three rounds with whatever weapons they decided to use. Oh, and nothing _too _dangerous…  
Half an hour later, and Jack grinned, tapping out.  
"Okay, you win… As usual."  
Bunny, having narrowly won the first round with the staffs as well, shrugged.  
"Yer gettin better though… Wanna try something else?"  
"I thought you needed to get back to work?"  
"… I got time."  
Jack grinned. Mission accomplished.  
"Sure… bow?"  
"Read my mind."  
_

Bunny jumped from the tunnel, into the warren, and found himself yawning.  
Jack had left him, at the Pole, to tell North what had happened, and to-most likely-sleep there instead of heading back, and Bunny himself had found himself tiring.  
So, not only did Jack get him to have a break, he also succeeded in making him want to sleep.  
Damn, he could be very manipulative when he wanted to be…  
But he had to say he was glad for it… And right now, sleep _did _sound good.

A messenger egg arrived in North's study, just as Jack was about to leave, and he translated his chattering, grinning as he did so.  
"Bunny's finally getting some sleep."  
"Sounds like good idea, Da?"  
"A very good idea. Mind if I kip here tonight?"  
"You do never need to ask Jack, you know that."  
"Yeah… but yeah… but… what was I saying?" He blinked as he yawned, and North chuckled.  
"That you were about to get some sleep."  
"Ah… Good plan. G'night."  
"Sleep well, Jack."  
North grinned as Jack left, and then got back to his plans. But they were not toy plans, Oh no. They were war plans. War plans that could destroy the entire world as they knew it if they were to fall into the wrong hands... They were War Plans for the possible battle of the Older Guardians versus Jack Frost...  
They really did need to team up on the youngest guardian one of these days after all…  
But maybe _after_ they had dealt with that Ice Spirit, Ice Black.  
From what they could tell, he was getting ready for something... and they had no idea what it was.

* * *

**Belt (from the croods): Dun Dun Duuuuuuunnnnnnnnnn! *vanishes*  
Megamind (having just arrived): Ollo…  
Me: Err… Hi?  
Yoda: You're blue…  
Megamind: You're green…  
Me: *rolling eyes and turning to Vader* Oh, and **_**I'm**_** ineloquent?  
Vader: It was a fair assessment which is now being reappraised.  
Me: Oh, now you're just trying to make a point…  
Vader: Indeed. Who is the little blue man with the big head?  
Papa Smurf: Oi! Are you insulting me?  
Me: *raises an eyebrow* What are you doing here?  
Papa Smurf: He said something about a little blue man with a big head and-  
Megamind: He meant me…  
Papa Smurf: Ah… Very well. *vanishes*  
Megamind: Now, *turns to Vader* Take that back!  
Vader: What are you going to do little man? Your blaster is nothing compared to the powers of the dark si- Ah!  
Megamind: *having just de-hydrated Vader* Where's your Dark Side now?  
Me: *taking the cube* Hmm, Vader cubes… Just add water for an instant Vader… The possibilities are endless!  
Vader Cube: *illegible* mmmfff mmm hmmm mmmffffffff!  
Me: *grinning* Cheers Megamind!  
Megamind: All in a days work for the hero of metrosity- Hey! I pronounced it right!  
Me: Good for you! Till next time guys!**

**Oh, and JackFrostLover1324 (mind if I just call you JFL?) Cheers for adding me to your author faves and follows!**


	34. A White Easter

**More Jack and Bunny brotherly bonding shizzle and as many feels as I could cram in :D  
This is one of my longer Chapters, so hope you enjoy!  
_**

**Vader: Eurghh… Positive emotion. You should feel more anger and fear Raven! You would make a fine apprent-**  
**Me: You say apprentice to the dark side again, and I will grab your light saber and ram it up- Ahem, *grins disarmingly at readers and uses the force* You heard nothing and will simply read this chapter… And enjoy it…?**  
**Vader: You must not question the force. You must-**  
**Me: Here we go again… Ah well, Enjoy guys!  
_**

**Oh, and thanks to ToxinAngel969 (for the follow), headphonesinn481 (for the fave and follow as well as faving me), TheBluestRose (for faving and following both me and the story!) and wijgutierrez(for the fave)  
**

* * *

Jack blinked as he took in what Bunny had just said.  
"W-what?"  
"Ya heard me Frostbite. Ya promised snow on Easter, so they're gonna get snow on Easter."  
He was talking about the nurse, Ruth, in the orphanage.  
But the nurse and the orphanage weren't on the forefront of his mind right now. What was on the forefront of his mind was that fact that Aster Bunnymund had just told him, in explicit terms, that there was gonna be snow the following Sunday. Easter Sunday.  
"B-but you... Why would...?"  
"Because I'm a guilt ridden, overstuffed Plushie who wants to get my conscience off of my back. It's not that big a deal Frostbite."  
But it was, and they both knew it.  
"I-Are you sure...?"  
"Damn sure."  
Jack laughed as he pulled the startled Pooka into a hug.  
"Thanks Bunny."  
"No Problem... Now give me a hand with these? I still got a couple a hundred ta paint."  
He didn't need the help, but Jack sat down anyway.  
Painting the eggs with Bunny had become his favourite way to spend the day over the last few weeks, and he appreciated the chance to get to know his  
broth-  
Jack blinked, cutting the thought off midway.  
Had he... Had he really just thought that?  
He shook his head clearing it, returning to the small egg he was painting.  
Why on earth had that popped into his head?  
_

North grinned as Bunny and Jack leapt out of the tunnel, grinning and laughing.  
The two were practically brothers, though they were too stubborn to admit such.  
"Jack! Bunny! Things are finished for Easter?"  
"Yeah. Frostbite 'ere has a knack for it. All ready to go and I have a spare few days before hand for the first time in centuries..."  
"That sounded like a compliment, Fur-ball?" Jack said, perching himself on the overhead beams, and the Pooka rolled his eyes.  
"Don't ya let it get to ya head, mate."  
"Would I? Modest old me?"  
"Sarcasm again, Frostbite?"  
"Sorry. Natural talent."  
"So's bein' irritating apparently."  
"Damn right."  
"Ahem!" They both turned to see a wide grin on North's face, and Jack grinned sheepishly.  
"Sorry North."  
"Is no problem. But if you could keep sibling rivalry to minimum around Pole, I would appreciate it. Must have it left standing after all."  
They had both given indignant huffs at the sibling rivalry comment, and North rolled his eyes, sighing to himself.  
So much in denial.  
"So everything is on track for Easter yes? Nothing seeming to be going wrong?"  
Bunny shook his head.  
"Nope. Though knowing our luck, that could change like that." He clicked his fingers, and Jack sighed.  
"Keep calm, Bunny. Maybe it'll be third time lucky this year?"  
"With ya making it snow? What're the chances of that, eh Frostbite?"  
Jack looked indignant at that, and Bunny was about to apologise, knowing Jack would be taking it seriously, when North butt in.  
"Snow?"  
Bunny nodded.  
"Yup. Frostbite here has a promise ta keep, don'tcha mate? "  
Jack shrugged, grinning.  
"Yup."  
North blinked.  
"Promise? To who?"  
Jack blinked, thinking for a moment, then smiled.  
"A very special believer... And old... friend I would say."  
North looked like he was going to ask more, but caught a subtle shake of Bunny's head and let it drop.  
"Okay then. Now all we need is for something to go boom and this day will have shock, awe and action."  
Jack grinned.  
"That can be arranged?"  
The huge guardian blinked, waving his hands.  
"No no, is fine. Shock and awe is perfectly fine. But, if I may ask, why did you agree to snow day?"  
This was to Bunnymund, and the Pooka looked over to Jack.  
The youngest guardian sighed.  
"You can tell him. I don't mind..."  
"Ya sure?"  
Jack gave a small shrug and grinned sadly.  
"Yup. No need to keep secrets anymore..."  
_

North sighed, feeling terrible for Jack, as Bunny finished telling what Jack had told him. Then he turned to look at the youngest guardian, who was sat, still, on the window seat, staring out into nothing.  
"I am truly sorry Jack."  
The winter spirit blinked, turning to him, and gave a small smile.  
"Don't be. It was a... a long time ago."  
"You still think of her?"  
"Faith? Yes. Every Easter."  
"What happens every Easter?" This was Tooth, as she came flying in, and Bunny sighed, looking to Jack.  
The winter spirit blinked, then got to his feet. Sure, it was a long time ago, and sure, he knew everyone should know, but that didn't mean he wanted to listen to it twice...  
"I'm gonna err... Just..."  
"Get on, Frostbite. We'll catch ya later."  
Jack nodded, gratefully, and flew out, leaving Tooth bemused.  
"What's going on?"  
North sighed.  
"Bunny is better placed to tell you, Tooth."  
The Pooka nodded, then frowned.  
"Okay, but Tooth? No smothering Jack when I'm done."  
The Tooth Fairy looked rather worried at that, but slowly nodded.  
"Okay..."

Tooth had tears trailing down her cheeks when Bunny finished, and slowly wiped them away as she thought about how Jack must have felt.  
"You know..." she said, quietly, "We think we know him, or at least start to, then something like this happens... we learn something which changes everything we thought we knew about him. He must have felt so alone..."  
North and Bunny could only agree with her, and after a few minutes the Pooka sighed.  
"I'm gonna get back to the warren. Call me paranoid, but after the last two Easters, I'm not risking anything going wrong."  
"Even with snow?" North asked, raising an eyebrow, and Bunny raised an eyebrow as he tapped a tunnel.  
"I don't see a risk mate."  
North smiled as Bunny vanished.  
Whether knowing it or not, the trust Bunny had shown towards Jack was, he knew, one of the greatest gifts the youngest guardian could receive.  
_

Jack gave Bunny a quick glance.  
"You're... sure about this?"  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Frost..."  
"... Warning heeded."  
Jack blinked, waving the staff slightly, and grinned as small flakes started to fall.  
Soon, the ground was covered in a soft white powder, and Bunny had to grin, as he spread out the eggs, before preparing to leave. They did look… well, perfect, laying out on the snow...  
"See ya later Frostbite..."  
"Okay... and thanks Bunny."  
"No problem."  
Bunny vanished, and Jack flew up to the orphanage window, to be greeted with several grinning faces.

The young girl, Laura, he remembered, ran up to him, gripping his leg.  
"Jackie!"  
"Hey kiddo, how ya doing?"  
"Fine. Nurse Ruthie said you might visit! Did you make it snow?"  
"Yeah. Ya gonna go out?"  
"Uhuh! We just wanted to see you first!"  
Jack had to laugh at their enthusiasm, and spoke with them all for a while, before they ran outside, leaving the room just as another familiar face walked in.  
"Hello Jack."  
"Hello Ruth... How have you been?"  
"I've been just fine. I wondered whether you would come."  
"Of course. I promised, did I not? In a round-a-bout way..."  
"That you did. Thank you, you have made this Easter one of the best they've all had."  
"No problem. I may not be able to do it every _Easter_... But every Christmas will be a white one. I can guarantee that much."  
"You are a very special person, Jack. So much care for others..."  
"Well, I am the guardian of fun."  
"Guardian of fun?"  
"Yes. As a guardian of the children, I have a centre. Mine is fun... Can't say I was too surprised to discover it..."  
"I can see why... These guardians?"  
"Me, the Easter Bunny, Santa Clause, Sandman and the Tooth Fairy. Protecting the children of the world..." Jack said, rolling his eyes at how strange that must sound.  
"If anyone else had told me to believe in them, I might have called them crazy..." Ruth said, with a smile, and Jack shrugged, grinning.  
"Yet here we are..."  
"Here we are indeed... It's good to hear that someone is looking out for the children, especially those who have no-one..."  
"They have people like you."  
"Yes. But it is not quite the same. Laura had become a very firm believer in you... I'd go so far as to say she is a major fan, as I believe the children are calling it these days?"  
Jack laughed.  
"Sounds about right... In that case, I'll have to try and visit more often."  
"I think we would all like that."  
"I would too... Are you not going to enjoy the snow?"  
"I'm afraid that the cold does not do these old bones any good, Jack."  
Jack grinned.  
"Very well..."  
A small rain of snowflakes fell over her, not cold enough to cause any discomfort, but plenty enough to make her smile.  
She heard a joyful laugh, and looked over to the window to see that Jack Frost had vanished.  
She leant out of the window to see him flying and creating huge mounds of snowballs, waving to the children, before turning to her, giving her a snappy salute, and flying away.  
She smiled, laughing lightly, and feeling younger than she had in years.  
_

Jack arrived in Burgess just as the children were waking, and he realised that he had just missed Bunnymund.  
Ah well, he could catch him up later. He grinned as he met Jamie, who was being dragged from the house by Sophie, and they both waved, Sophie running to him.  
Jack lifted her up, giving her a hug, before turning to the both of them.  
"Right guys, I'm afraid I can't stay long. I promised Bunny I'd catch him up and finish with the eggs... I just wanted to give you these."  
He handed them each one of North's orbs.  
"If you're ever in trouble, and need me, you just throw them and call my name. They will either open a portal to me or to North or one of the others who can help you get to me."  
They both nodded, and Jamie turned to him.  
"Why?"  
"One, because I should have done it ages ago. And two, because trouble is coming and I want to make sure you guys are safe."  
"Trouble?"  
"Someone from my past is starting to cause problems..."  
"Oh..."  
"Hey," he grinned at Jamie, who looked worried about him, "I'll be fine. I'll come back later and tell you properly, okay? You and Sophie go and have some fun."  
Jamie grinned, letting Sophie hug Jack and drag him off.  
"Okay!"  
_

Bunny grinned as Jack leapt from a tunnel.  
"Bout time Frostbite., How'd it go?"  
"Fine. Looks like I'll be visiting more regularly. And Jamie wants to know more about Ice Black..."  
"You're going to tell him?"  
"Yeah. How can I not?"  
"Yeah. Fair point. Might be safer if they know what ta look out for. Ya still think he'll target someone ya know?"  
"I don't know what to think. It's most likely he'll just start something... All I know is I want to make sure they're all safe, just in case..."  
"They'll be fine Frostbite..."  
Jack grinned at him.  
"Yeah... So, eggs?"  
_

Jack vanished into a tunnel, just as Bunnymund did, and they arrived in the Warren at the same time. Jack flopped own against a tree, yawning, but grinning.  
"How do you manage it? It's exhausting..."  
"Ya get used to it..."  
"I'll take your word for it."  
"So you're telling me that you promised them a white Christmas every year?"  
Jack grinned, as Bunny sat next to him, and shrugged.  
"It's no big deal. I do the same for Burgess... And It's one of the only times I can actually-"  
"Ya can do it at Easter?"  
"What?"  
Bunny shrugged.  
"Well, ya can't do it every year, what with the humans getting suspicious and all that, but ya can do it every few years or so."  
Jack blinked.  
"Y-you're letting me... I thought you hated the snow?"  
"Nah. The eggs actually looked nice on the snow. So go ahead. If ya want ta give 'em a snowy Easter every few years, knock yourself out... Not literally," he added as an afterthought, "That wouldn't be the smartest thing to- Woah!"  
He was cut off as Jack pulled him into a hug, and grinned.  
"Thanks Bunny."  
"No Problem Frostbite-"  
He was cut off by the sound of wings, as Tooth barreled into him, panicked, and clearly not in the mood to waste time with greetings.  
"We have a problem..."  
"Problem?"

Then Jack blinked. It was just past midnight which meant...  
"Oh no... It's April 1st..."  
Bunny blinked, then stared at Tooth, who nodded and handed Jack a note.

_Jack Frost,  
Happy April Fool's day... Or rather, not. Vengeance will be mine! _:)

_April Fool._

Jack's first thought. He actually put a smiley face on a letter?  
Second thought? Oh damn. They were all doomed...  
The gulp the youngest guardian gave caused Bunny and Tooth to share a look, that clearly said '_Moon help us all...'  
_Because if Jack was worried, then there was no hope for all of them...  
Then Tooth sighed._  
_"That's not all... He's already got to North."  
At that, Jack blinked.  
"He's taking it out on you guys?"  
Tooth nodded, and Jack flexed his fingers.  
"Right, that's it. Nobody pranks you guys but me. It is on!"  
He rolled up his sleeves and tapped a tunnel, before leaping down and vanishing. Tooth and Bunny sighed, before Bunny tapped another.  
This was not going to end well...

* * *

**Yup, next chapter, April Fool returns! More Pranks, one very annoyed Jack and, to top it all off, its April Fool's day, April Fool's home territory...**_**  
**_**(Yeah, you're liking me now *huge grin* Even if I won't be able to update now till Sunday, as I have an exam later today, then my laptop is bleurghhh and life sucks sometimes…)  
Anyway, what did you think of this chapter? Painting the eggs? Ruth? The orphanage? Jamie and Sophie? Bunny finally said Jack was his brother? (Don't worry, that particular little revelation is far from finished with…)  
Please review and let me know!  
And Ice Black will be back before long, don't worry!  
_**

**Ice Black: Well finally…**  
**Pitch: Hey, how come he gets to be in the fic so soon and I don't?**  
**Me: Because it's getting dull to see you getting beaten up all the time… Don't worry, I'll put you in somewhere… I promised didn't I?**  
**Pitch: *Grumbling* You'd better…**  
**Ice Black: Are you really threatening the author Pitchy? I mean, not only does she have the power to make your life a nightmare, but she is also still carrying her light saber and has that cookie blaster slung on her back.**  
**Me: *grins, lounging against the wall and flipping the light saber into the air and catching it, nonchalantly***  
**Pitch: … Okay, fair point. But how can she make my life a nightmare? I'm the king of the nightma-**  
***cuts off as I snap my fingers***  
**Me: Oh really? Well then… Fear the Cuteness! (ya see what I did there? Chapter title quote! I feel so smart…)**  
***dozens of fluffy pink and white rabbits attack Pitch, burying him***  
**Ice Black: *blinks* Err… You're gonna torture me enough in the fic right? You don't have to do it in the authors note?**  
**Me: *considering… then glares at him* Very well… I'm feeling generous…**  
**Vader: *snorts* Yeah. Of course you are…**  
**Me: Kenobi! Deal with your evil padawan?**  
**Kenobi: *sighs…* If I have to…**  
**Me: *sitting back as the problems take care of themselves* Ah… I like being the author… Even if my insanity is notching up… Biiiit by biiiiiiittttt *maniacal look* Be seeeeeeing you!**

**Oh, and cheers to Chaosguardian13 for faving and following me!**


	35. April Fool's Day

**In response to Sylvery's(guest reviewer) comment... _"It'd be funny if you could make a story just for your author's notes content!"  
_A couple of friends have also been on at me to do just that. As in just a script form focusing on the rotg and star wars fandoms, but bringing in others here and there and making an entire fic out of the whole thing... Just wondering, would any of you guys read it?  
Anyway, thanks so much for all the reviews and feedback and support Sylvery! Its really appreciated :D And if you ever get an account on here, let me know!  
_**

**So, this is gonna be one of the longest yet, and will continuing directly on from the last, as you might have guessed-  
Vader(having had enough of me blabbering on): You can be very patronising when you wish to be, you know.  
Me: *glares*  
Vader: *throws hands up in defeat and shuts up*  
Me: Ahem, right… where was… Oh, yeah. Right… Anyway, I'm just gonna jump right in here. Oh, and a lot of the ideas in here are based of ideas given to me many eons ago by several of you guys… I honestly cannot remember who, so if you want to remind me, I will properly credit you in the next chappie! *blushes and grins sheepishly…* You know, I had the credit notes all ready and written, and I lose the documents… Really sorry guys-  
Vader: *snorts*  
Me: *doesn't even turn as I take out blaster and turn it to full power, burying him in cookie dough before turning and grinning at the sight*  
I enjoy life sometimes… And I hope _you_ enjoy _this_!**

* * *

Jack met with a layer of ice when he opened a tunnel at the Pole, and Bunny and Tooth, who appeared behind him, backed up as he punched through it.  
He leapt up through, coming face to face with North, and narrowing his eyes.  
"Where is he?"  
"I am not sure. But somehow he has frozen all of pole."  
"Right. One sec…"  
Jack grabbed an orb, and vanished, leaving the guardians to sigh. Bunny frowned.  
"Can we give him free reign?"  
North gaped.  
"Is madness!"  
"But it may be the only chance-"  
"No… Not_ yet_ anyway…"  
_

Jack appeared at Shady's place, and the shadow spirit sighed as he saw him.  
"Fool's started. Hasn't he?"  
"Yes. And he started with the Guardians. Most specifically, the Pole."  
Shady's eyes widened, and he gulped.  
"They haven't allowed you free reign… have they…?"  
"Not yet… But they will. I need Iceman… Fool froze the Pole over and you know I'm not as good with ice as he is…"  
"Hiding with Clover in the eastern meadows. All of the spirits have gone into hiding…"  
"All but you?"  
"I _was_ hiding…"  
"… Don't blame you. Cheers."  
"You owe me…"  
"Nothing new…"

He leapt through another portal, and appeared directly behind Iceman.  
"Yo Icey. Fool froze the Pole. I need you to unfreeze it."  
Iceman blinked at him.  
"Does the term _in hiding_ mean anything to you?"  
Jack sighed, not wanting to have had to do this, but realising he had no choice but to bring out one of his most dangerous weapons. Turning to Clover, he gave her… The puppy dog eyes, then, to top it off, the small, sheepish and far too cute and adorable grin.  
Hmm… He would have to use that on Tooth sometime… See what effect it would have…  
"Please guys…?"  
Clover held out for an entire three seconds- a very impressive achievement- before turning to Iceman.  
"Help him… then we can hide somewhere else. For the next decade or so…"  
Iceman sighed, and nodded.  
"Fine… The things I do for you guys…"  
Jack and Iceman leapt through, and the other guardians, Sandy having just managed to blast his way through the ice, nodded in greeting as they continued discussing how to locate Fool.  
Iceman got started on the ice, leaving Jack to pace in mid-air... Before he ended up glaring at nothing and huffing in frustration.  
The guardians all exchanged looks, and Iceman whistled softly as Jack morphed to pacing on the ground.  
He _never _paced on the ground…  
Iceman sighed to himself.  
In the middle of a war between April Fool and Jack Frost… at _three_ in the _morning_?  
How did he get himself into these situations…?

It was nearly half four by the time he had melted most of the ice thin enough to break through-He had no idea how April Fool had done it, but he'd done it pretty damned well-and making it easy enough for Jack to finish the job.  
He wished them all luck, and hopped through a portal, leaving the guardians to wonder just how _they_ got dragged into things like this…  
After a few more minutes, Jack finally stopped pacing, and turned to them.  
"Okay. I'm going to give a brief Prankster 101. Sandy, Bunny, you will already know it as it was in the prank books I gave you, so you'll know why we need to start being very careful. This is April Fool's home territory, and we need to walk the fine line between beating him-which will have him onto us for the next century, and pulling level-which will leave our reputations intact. He will have laid traps, he will be playing pranks, and he will target all of us individually. His aim will likely be to irritate you so much, you allow me to go all out on his ass… Of course, that won't be good for anyone, so we will be leaving it as a last resort… We will have to focus on getting through the Pole, then the warren, then the Palace, though he will not have such ready access, so be wary of trouble only at the outskirts of both of those… Also, be wary of illusions, tripwires, cling film, overhead traps, mind washed yetis-What? He stole my notebook- anyway, yes. Keep an eye out, never let your guard down, and DO. NOT. INSULT. HIM. Any questions?"  
"Yeah…" Bunny said, "Ya _seriously_ _think_ ya can draw _April Fool_ to a _stalemate_ on his _home turf_… _before noon_?"  
Jack grinned.  
"I've been prepared for this for years… true, it is not in the setting I imagined, but my newest fail safe procedures have been laid into effect. For now, we are not the frontline… We are the distraction."  
"And how does one go about being a distraction?" North asked, and Jack grinned.  
"By setting off every trap we can find…"  
They all stared at him, then Bunny sighed.  
"Well, it's just for a morning… How bad can it be?"  
Jack faced palmed.  
"You_ jinxed_ it? _Rule number one_… you _never jinx it_…" he said, more to himself than them, then lashed out with a roundhouse kick at the ice still blocking the doorway, shattering it.  
"Right then… Shall we?"  
_

At the end of the corridor, they met their first challenge.  
Or rather, irritation.  
Countless toys had been enchanted in some way, and started following them around, making the most irritating noises.  
Trains whistled, cars tooted and instruments with legs chimed, jangled and rattled as they danced along behind, and planes whizzed, toy guitars thrummed and birds chirped as they flew around their heads.  
Funnily enough, it was Tooth who cracked first.  
"Damn it all to the moon and back make them shut up!"  
They all stared at her, and Jack blinked. Wow… Tooth cursed… Wow… Just wow… Life changing revelation, that.  
"Seriously, someone do something before I smash something!"  
North started to try and placate her, clearly panicked for his precious toys, and Jack sifted through his various ideas until he found one that fit.  
The others stared at him, bemused yet interested, as he started whistling, changing in pitch.  
Eventually, he got to a middling pitch and the toys all silenced themselves as he carried through the note.  
Jack hmm'ed, then grabbed a nearby flute, whistling into it and making it go limp in his hands.  
Then he started playing that same note constantly, causing the toys to go sleepy, and he gestured for Sandy to blast them with dream sand.  
The toys fell into a slumber, and Jack twirled the flute between his fingers/  
"So predictable… I'm almost disappointed. And he said he didn't like the classics-"  
"Oh… I don't."

They all froze, as a very familiar voice came over the speakers.  
"Hello again Jack."  
"Yo Ape. How's it going?"  
"Very good… How does it feel to be on the other end of the speaker?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Makes a pleasant change."  
"… Oh…"  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"Y'are such a dill sometimes Frostbite..."  
Jack raised an eyebrow. Insults in true Auzzie style? Two could play at that game…  
"Why am _I_ the idiot, drongo!"  
Bunny grinned as he realised what was running through Jack's mind. This would be interesting…  
"Oh, well that's nice, ya bloody Fruit loop!"  
"Really? You're calling me a fool? Can't think of anything better Boomer?"  
"Yeah, I am, and yeah, I can. Ya're a total Galah, ya hoon!"  
"Oh, coz you got a right ta be a bloody knocker!"  
"Damned right!"  
"Ya got no right ta be saying anything, Roo! Forget going Troppo, ya've gone bloody  
Warreno!"  
"Oh really? That was actually pretty smooth, coming from a Whacka, like you-"  
"Oh, I'm the bloody Whacka! All you do is yabber on and on and man, it gets -"  
"Oh, ya just can't let it drop, can ya, ya larrikin?!"  
"... Well, I'll agree with that one. But it don't mean you ain't still a bloody-"  
April Fool's voice rang out.

"Oi!" April Fool's voice, clearly strained-though from trying to stop laughing- or from trying not to scream in frustration, they weren't sure- rang out over the speakers. "Could the Plushie and the Slushie please just shut up!?"  
Jack blinked, cocking his head.  
"Plushie and Slushie? That ain't half bad, Ape... For a mongrel that is..."  
"Oi," Bunny said, "That's taking things a bit far..."  
"Oh, come on, he's probably grinning like a shot fox!"  
"Hmm, I ain't heard that one in a while. That was pretty grouse for a bludger..."  
"... Did ya really just call _me_ lazy? How the moon am _I _a _layabout_?"  
"... I was short on time."  
"You're _short_ a few kangaroo's in the top paddock, too, ya over grown furball-"  
"Hey, that wasn't half bad-"  
"Oh, for moon's sake!" Tooth cried, finally getting her breath back and regaining her composure after she had burst into an uncontrollable laughing fit, which North and Sandy still seemed to be in the grips of, "Can you both please stop? I can't breathe..."  
"Yeah," April Fool agreed, "Please do… You're gonna need your breath…"  
A sudden sound behind them had North and Jack groaning, as they recognised it, and they shared a look, Jack's quickly morphigh to one of _'we're doomed'_ incredulity.  
"Please tell me you didn't North?"  
"I'm afraid I did… finished designs and first prototypes last week…"  
Jack sighed.  
"Everyone take cover…" he said, almost lazily, and created a small ice shield. "See? This is why I like to be able to be prepared. Because when mini planes start to fly at you, armed with mini missiles, and are accompanied by-Damn it, not the slingshots! ... And they have cookies. Great. Nice touch, Ape. Guys? Seriously, take cover…"  
The other guardians ducked behind the ice-or in North and Sandy' case, behind a golden shield- just as the planes started their attack.  
Small missiles that exploded on impact, with quite a bit of force, were supported by tiny cookies flung by slingshots and round after round wore down their defences.  
Jack called out over the tumult.  
"Now, If I was allowed full reign, I have the perfect thing for occasions such as this. A huge, vat of my personally mixed bubble liquid and sticks which can encase anything with a rubbery bubble type casing. Works wonders, but no… "  
North sighed as the others shot him looks, and shrugged.  
"What? Is wrong to want Pole left standing?"

A few minutes and a couple more shields later and the planes were out of ammunition, as were the slingshots which had been taking cookies from a hovering bucket, and Jack gave the situation a quick appraisal before letting the shield drop.  
"Well, I haven't seen that one before. It should become a classic-"  
"I have to agree with you there." Fool said, over the speakers.  
Bunny looked back to North.  
"_Now_ can Jack go all prankster on his ass?"  
Jack grinned.  
"I see what you did there. Switching gangsta for prankster? Very smooth… Though I have to say, I'm not too fond of those types of movies- Anyway, yeah North, Can I?"  
"I do not yet see why-"  
April Fool's voice came up again, but this time from the end of the corridor.  
"You are telling me that even now, you will not let Jack Frost's Prankster side out to play? Guardians? What must one do to break North?"  
Tooth rolled her eyes.  
"Probably ruin his cookie recipe or-" She slapped a hand over her mouth just as Jack did, but it was too late.  
Jack gave her a panicked look, then glanced back to see that Fool had vanished.  
"Oh no…"

A few seconds later, Fool returned with a very familiar and official looking piece of paper.  
"Hmm… Brownie… chocolate… milk…"  
North blinked as Fool grabbed a match and lit it, holding it under the paper.  
"Do not even think about-"  
Too late. The paper went up in flames, and dropped into a pile of ash.  
North took one look, then turned to Jack.  
"Get him."  
Jack gave him a salute, grabbed the orb thrown to him, and leapt through a portal.  
April Fool looked confused, and turned to Bunny, who grinned evilly.  
"Mate, you just made a big mistake…"  
"… No matter. Now, how long will it take for him to find you at the warren, I wonder?"  
Suddenly, they all found themselves in the warren, and Fool smirked.  
"Good luck guardians…"  
_

Several tense minutes later, and Bunny frowned as he heard rumbling, then blinked.  
"Oh Moon… Climb! Get to higher ground!"  
They didn't question it, and Sandy and Tooth floated into the air as North and Bunny leapt onto the top of the ridge on the rock face face.  
Just in time to avoid the golums, which had been shoved on their sides and were now rolling about under Fool's direction.  
Damn it, if they got caught under one of those things, it would not be pretty… Almost half an hour passed, before the golums started to ram into the rock face, making it shudder.  
Just as the rock threatened to crumble, a sudden burst of ice froze the golum in place.  
They all turned to stare, as Jack leapt through a portal, and Tooth gasped as the other's stared.  
Jack was dressed in his all in one, with a blue zip up hoody on over the top, and the black leather jacket on over that, both unzipped to reveal an impressive array of weapons. Two belts of grenades were slung across his chest, and two thing holsters held fully stocked foldout blasters. He also had on some very kickass looking black boots, which had his knife starred inside as well as small disks of ice stuck to the side. He reached behind his back, and two clips automatically clasped around his staff, holding it in place in a holster, as Jack grabbed a few of the disks, snorting.  
"Basic instinctual mind instruction? So last century…"

He threw one of the disks, which froze around the base of the golum, then threw two more, building up a block of ice which pushed the golum upright again, freezing its base.  
He did the same with the other two in the clearing, having to leap around on the various blocks of ice to get a better shot, before finally landing on the ground again and grinning at Bunny.  
"Told you Ice Shruikans were more effective… True, these are the latest edition, and experimental, but I'd say they work fine."  
Tooth was still staring, and he raised an eyebrow.  
"Tooth?"  
"Where did you get the boots?"  
"Why…?"  
"I want some…"  
"… Well, at least now I know what to get you for your birthday-"  
He span as April Fool appeared again, and the spirit blinked at him.  
"Ah, so _this_ is what Jack Frost looks like when he means business."  
"No… This is what Jack Frost looks like when he's not sure whether to _bother_ meaning business."  
"That was unnecessary."  
"No, that was necessary."  
"Well, we could debate that, but I'm running out of morning… So many pranks, so little time."  
"Is still three hours till noon!" Tooth said, and Fool smirked.  
"Like I said, so little time… So anyway, now that you've dealt with the big guys, how about the little guys?"  
Bunny sighed as dozens of small fluffy rabbits appeared, and leapt down from the ledge.  
"It's too soon after Easter for this…" he said, as they ran forward, and Jack sighed.  
"Okay, this one I was_ not_ prepared for… Ah well, time to improvise. Bunny? Have any carrots nearby?"  
"After the warning you gave me to be prepared for anything? I got a barrel of them back at the storeroom."  
"Great… Split up, and meet there?  
Bunny nodded. "North, Sandy, Tooth, you guys head round the cliffs, I'll tunnel the long way round, and Frostbite, you okay to take the forest?"  
"No Problem."  
The others nodded too, though Sandy stared signing to Jack. The winter spirit nodded.  
"Sandy's with me then."  
They all broke off, and Jack leapt into a tree as Sandy floated.  
"Okay, I'm staying off the ground, so I'm going to jump between the trees. Reckon ya can keep up, old timer?" Jack grinned as Sandy raised an eyebrow, before making a winged motorbike with the sand.  
"Point taken… Okay the… Go!"  
Of course, Sandy could do nothing more than stare as he followed the leaping, spinning, cartwheeling guardian through the treetops, mouth hanging open the entire time.

They arrived at the store room just as Bunny did, and the Pooka began to split the carrot into five piles. Jack quickly grabbed an empty belt and stuffed carrots into the slots, before tying it around his waist, wrapping it around twice and making sure it was within easy reach.  
Tooth and North appeared just as Bunny finished sorting, breathing deeply.  
"Rabbit's… On our tail…"  
"Pun intended?" Jack asked, and North raised an eyebrow.  
"What pun?"  
"… No matter. Arm yourselves and get ready to go…"  
"We are not harming the rabbits, right?" Tooth asked, and Jack frowned.  
"Of course not! Honestly, there is a line somewhere you know… Just get the carrots beneath the noses of the rabbits-no matter how you do it- and they will do the rest."  
They all nodded, and waited. Of course, as they all waited, Sandy-unbeknownst to Jack- sent a quick daydream to the other guardians, showing them has Jack had leapt from tree to tree, and causing them all to stare at the youngest guardian, who blinked at the attention.  
"What?"  
Before he got an answer, the sound of hundreds of paws filled the air, and he rolled his eyes.  
"No matter… Go!"  
They all burst out, and Bunny immediately started chopping carrot, throwing it to Sandy, who rained the small pieces down on the first ranks of rabbits. He then made the others dozy as North and Tooth did a similar thing with whole carrots.  
They all blinked as they realised that at least a quarter of the mass of fluff had gone after Jack, and blinked as they saw what he was doing. A variety of things actually…  
One, he was chopping carrot with his knife, his expert fingers making quick work of them, before he used a slingshot to fire them down-with uncanny aim- in front of the rabbits, before leaping to a different tree to repeat the process. He also trapped pieces of carrot inside huge snowflakes, raining them down and making them melt on contact with the rabbit's skin or the ground, leaving the carrot to tumble down.  
It took several minutes, but they eventually managed to get the rabbits so full of carrot, and so dozy from the various balls of dream sand that had exploded over them, that they shook off the control Fool had over them and fell asleep, leaving the field covered in small mounds of fur.  
Jack landed in a crouch as he leapt down from the tree, and grinned.  
"Well, that was fun."  
"Glad _you_ think so…" Fool said, suddenly materializing and looking grudgingly impressed. "But we still have one more place to visit…"  
Tooth flitted anxiously.  
"Oh no…"  
Jack nudged her.  
"It's okay, the fairies aren't there… I'll explain why later."  
She gave a very relieved looking smile, then blinked, looking confused, but shrugged it off.  
"Better get a move on then…" she said, managing to look unconcerned, and Bunny held his paw up for a second.  
"Hold on…"  
The Jack held up a hand.  
"No, wait a sec Bunny..." He suddenly called to the wind, yelling 'Now!' and was rewarded by a sudden drop of snow on April Fool.  
Bu it wasn't just any snow, oh no. This was snow infused with permanent blue dye, and as April Fool shook himself, pulling himself from the snowbank, he groaned.  
"Hey! I liked this outfit! No, I _loved_ this outfit!"  
Jack grinned, shrugging.  
"Hey there is no rule that says _you_ are the only one allowed to prank this morning..."  
Bunny gave him a high five, grinning.  
"Very smooth... Ya done?"  
"For now."  
"Good."  
The Pooka focused for a while, and suddenly, April Fool yelped and vanished.  
Bunny grinned.  
"Yeah. And stay out…"  
"Blocked him from the warren?" Jack asked, and Bunny nodded.  
"And I think we'd better do something similar with the palace and the Pole… They are too obvious a target…"  
North nodded.  
"Agreed… But best to deal with one problem at time, Da?"  
Tooth nodded.  
"Yeah. Like what on Moon has he done to my palace!?"  
_

Tooth stood, mouth gaping, at the monstrosity in front of her.  
Her entire palace-and by entire, that meant every tile and brick and square inch of it- was covered in bright pink bubble gum.  
And from what she could sense, there was extra sugar…  
"No… no… Not sugar… all of it… all of it sugar…"  
Jack hurried to give her a hug, and called to Bunny over Tooth's shoulder.  
"I need a list of things. And soon…"  
"What are they?"  
Jack reeled off a list, and the three other guardians blinked, before dashing out to get the… ingredients?  
They were back within fifteen minutes and Tooth gasped as she realised what Jack was creating.  
Different amounts of each various item was measured out- clearly he had done this before, from the practised precision he was showing- and mixed together, and Jack tested the gum's consistency.  
"I'll have to be quick…" he muttered, loading the mixture he had created into a blaster-which had been on his list - and reached behind him, grabbing his staff from the holder on his back and flying into the air.  
And ridiculous as it was, Pitch chose this moment to appear.  
"Hello Frost."  
"Oh, for Moon's sake. Do you not know what date it is? It's April the first. Do you really want to interfere in a battle between me and Fool? Are you really that stupid?"  
"I-"  
"Oh, I am so not in the mood for this. Just come back and get your ass beaten next week."  
"You insolent-"  
"Of for Moon's sake… Don't make me get Fool here as well. He won't be happy that you're interfering, and remember what he did last century? Remember what I did _less than two years ago_? One word for you Pitch… Floodlights."  
Pitch Black simply stared at him, then at the guardians, who were looking completely taken aback by Jack's impatient outburst, then back at Jack, and simply scowled.  
"I am in no mood for a verbal sparring match with you Frost. Or willing to face that Fool of a spirit."  
"Then get the hell out of here and come back some other time. I have a tooth palace to de-gum, and very little time in which to do so. Go on, Shoo!"  
Pitch simply glared at him, and vanished, leaving four very _bemused_ guardians and one very _busy_ guardian, who was armed with a blaster and an impatient mood.

Jack sprayed the mixture over the entire palace, section by section, Tooth and Sandy helping with their own blasters, which North and Bunny fetched from Jack's place, and slowly but surely, the gum fizzed and melted, dissolving under the mixture that Jack had perfected the previous year, in preparation of an event such as this.  
Soon, all that was left was a pink, fizzing mush around the edge of the palace, and Jack called in a snowstorm-which had the extra benefit of cooling him down, what with the ridiculous heat in Asia at this time of year and all- and let the snow build up over the mush, watching it melt and wash it away.  
In response to the questions of how on Moon Jack had managed to make a mixture like that, Jack simply shrugged.  
"You might not have thought it, but there are a few lines I won't cross… Not being prepared to fix things like _this_ is one of them. Doing things of this scale _without good reason_ is another. Took me weeks of experimenting to make this stuff…"  
"Well," Fool said, glaring as he appeared behind them, "It was time well spent. I spent ages coming up with a way to make a prank last for _hours,_ and you go and fix it in just over _one_."  
"Come on, you've got to admit, this crossed some kind of line… Tooth could have been in real trouble over the next few days if we didn't sort it."  
"You forget Jack, I am the spirit of pranking. True, I have lines I won't cross, but they are much higher than yours."  
"Oh, in some cases, I doubt that…" Jack muttered, just loud enough for the other guardians to hear, and they all looked at him, questioningly.  
Jack simply grinned.  
"Oh, look. Its eleven forty-five… Too late for you to set any more pranks Ape… Now me on the other hand…"  
"Oh, maybe no pranks, but I have one more chance to irritate you... A Yo Mamma Jokes competition!"  
Jack blinked. Then he blinked again.  
"You can_not_ be serious-"  
"Oh, but I am..."  
"But... That's the most ridiculous idea I've ever heard!"  
"Ah yes, humans and their ridiculous ideas..."  
Jack blinked again, then threw his hands up in surrender.  
"What can ya do, eh?" Then he grinned. "Aside from go running and crying to Yo Mamma..."  
Bunny sighed as Fool opened his mouth to respond, and said, in a tone laced with drama,  
"And so it begins..."  
_

Fool was quick to counteract the-rather smooth, he had to admit- start, and leant against a wall, knowing he was going to enjoy this.  
"Now then, that's no way to talk. Seeing as Yo mamma so... Hmm, let's start with fat. Seeing as Yo mamma so fat, she goes for a swim in the ocean and the whales start singing we are family."  
Jack snorted and shook his head, pitifully.  
"Oh dear... So old school. But, to be fair, Yo Mamma so stupid, there was _no_ hope for _you_... Then again, you didn't just fall from the stupid tree, you got dragged through dumb-ass forest."  
Bunny muttered something that sounded suspiciously like '_Ooh, Burn...'_ and Fool moved away from the wall, rolling his-still blue dyed-sleeves up. This was going to be a tricky one...  
"Oh yeah, well at least my Mamma didn't get arrested for mooning by simply looking out a window..."  
"Yeah? Well when it gets to the point where Yo Mamma gets measured at a doctors and has a doctor yelling at her that it's his phone number on the scales-"  
"At least it fit on the scales-"  
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was talking about her shadow. When _Yo Mamma_ step on the scales, it just says one-at-a-time please. Oh, and remember that time it said Lose-Some-Weight?"  
"Well, at least My Mamma not so fat as to take up two time zones."  
"Only because all she does is lay around the house. And when I say around the house? I mean _around_ _the house_."  
"At least she can fit in a house-"  
"Yeah, well make sure Yo Mamma don't go walking down a street in a yellow coat? She'll get fed up of everyone yelling '_Hey Taxi!_'"  
"Yeah, well at least people don't jog around her for exercise..."  
"Yo Mamma don't know the meaning of the word exercise! I mean, last time she ran the 50 yards dash, she needed an overnight bag! Hell, she can't even_ jump_ to a_ conclusion_!"  
Tooth giggled at that, well, even more so than the laughing fit she was currently at the mercy of, and Fool was quick to jump back in.  
"Well, I have to admit. At least Yo Mamma can jump... Even if she is so fat that when she plays hopscotch, she says New York... L.A... Chicago... Then again, last time she jumped into the air, she got stuck..."  
"Hey, do me a favour? Tell yo mamma that that photo she ordered is gonna be a bit late? I took the photo of her_ last year,_ and I'm afraid it's still printing..."

Sandy snorted at that one, giving Jack an appreciative thumbs up, and barely managing to keep the camera, that he had had ready fr an occassion just like this, steady.  
Fool took a deep breath, and calmed himself. He would _not_ lose this... Especially not on Camera!  
"Yeah? Well tell Yo Mamma that I still not happy I missed the entire first season of Downton Abbey... Ya know, when she walked in front of the TV that time?"  
"Well, last time Yo mamma did that, there was an eclipse. Not only because she blocked out the Sun that week, but because light just bends around her..."  
"Well at least My Mamma's cereal bowl didn't come with a lifeguard..."  
"Well, if we're speaking of meals, Yo mama is so fat that the sign inside one restaurant says, '_Maximum occupancy: 300, or Yo momma_.'"  
"Well, speaking of restaurants, Yo mama is so fat that she doesn't eat with a fork, she eats with a fork_lift_."  
"Well that must be a common occurrence for_ Yo_ Momma, because every time she turns around, everyone throws her a welcome home party!"  
"Well, at least my Mamma didn't have to get baptized at Sea world!"  
Jack grinned. Great... Fool was reverting back to the older ones... He had him on the run. Now all he needed was a really good run-through...  
"Oh, come on. Yo Mamma was sun-bathing on the beach, and not only was she zoned for commercial development, but Greenpeace showed up and tried to move her back into the ocean! At the same time as everyone else was running around yelling Free Willy and complaining that they weren't getting any sun. Anyway, when she_ finally_ managed to move and sit somewhere else, the warden called a tow-truck because he thought someone had parked in a pedestrian only zone."  
Fool blinked at that, knowing he'd need a pretty damned good run for the next few to make up for _that_, and his mind literally raced to find more. Hmm, maybe a new approach was needed... And maybe a stretcher for North, because the huge guardian was rolling on the floor, in stitches and with tears running down his cheeks from watching the scene...  
"Yeah? Well, not only is Yo Mamma _fat_, she's also _old_. Man, Yo Mamma so old, she has Moses in her yearbook!"  
Jack blinked at the subject change, but quickly replaced the so fat jokes in his waiting list for so old jokes.  
"Well, Yo Momma not only has an autographed Bible, but co-wrote the ten commandments!"  
"Well, Yo mamma so old, her social security number is 1."  
"Yo Mamma so old, she took her driving test on a dinosaur!"  
"Well, at lest Jurassic Park didn't bring back memories, like it did for _Yo_ Mamma."  
"Yeah? Well, at least my Mamma's memories aren't in black and white!"  
"Yeah? Well Yo Mamma so old she babysat Yoda!"  
And April Fool, actually a fan of Star Wars, found he couldn't bring himself to rebut that.  
Instead, he branched into yet another section.

"Well, you Mama so hairy, Big Foot wants to take her picture!"  
Jack didn't know many of these, but he had a plan. So Fool didn't like rebutting Star Wars?  
"Hey! Why Bring old Bigfoot into this?! Especially when Yo Mamma so hairy, she had no choice but to learn to speak _Wookie_! And seeing as people thought she was Chewbacca's cousin when she was lining up to go in to see the film... Speaking of which, Yo Mamma was so fat, she sat next to _everyone_ else in the cinema..."  
Fool blinked. Then mentally groaned, trying to find a direction this could take which would take him away from the Yo Mamma so fat jokes, and finding none... Unless...  
"Yo Mamma so fat, she went to a beauticians, and it took 12 hours... To get a quote. Though that may be because Yo Mamma so ugly..."  
Jack rolled his eyes... Okay, so that had been kinda smooth... Now to bring out the _real_ competition...  
"Yeah, well Yo Mamma so ugly, when I looked at her, I pinned a tail on her. Might also explain why _you're_ such an ass."  
"Well... Well Yo mama is so ugly that she threw a boomerang and it wouldn't even come back."  
Jack shook his head. Fool was losing his train of thought... If he could just keep going a little more...  
"Well, Yo Mamma so ugly, when she was born, the doctor slapped her and her parents-did I mention that her Yo Grandmother's actually still in therapy because of how fat Yo Mamma was into the bargain? No?- well, anyway, yeah. And you have to feel sorry for her. I mean, she didn't just get hit by the ugly stick, she was crushed beneath the entire tree..."  
"Well Yo mama is so ugly that she could be the poster child for birth control."  
"Ha, well when Yo Mamma looks in the mirror, not only does it bring her seven years bad luck, but it says viewer discretion is advised. And even then her reflection just shakes its head."  
"Well, Yo Mamma so ugly... when you went to the zoo, they said thanks for bringing her back."  
"Well, at least my Mamma couldn't take over for Pitch in creating nightmares. And at least North doesn't have to pay an elf to deliver her presents, like he does with _Yo_ Mamma."  
And that was it.

Sandy dropped the camera he was laughing so hard, that last line had North gasping for breath even as he was in he grips of one of the wort laughing fits he had ever had, Bunny was using the wall to help hold himself upright as he laughed and Tooth was in a huddle on the floor, in a fit just as bad as North's.  
Fool simply looked at all of them, the to Jack who was clearly prepared to go on, and held his hands up.  
"You win."  
Unfortunately, the camera caught the surrender just before Sandy turned it off, and Jack laughed.  
"Mate, we should do that every year... Oh, and look... Only ten minutes to twelve..."  
It took nine of those minutes and a lot of Jack's help, for the guardians to recover enough to stand, and it was only the promise that they would really want to see this that finally got Tooth and North upright.  
Fool looked very suspicious, and Jack sighed as he opened a portal.  
"Now, this is why we needed to be a distraction, guys."  
Before April Fool could react, Jack had shoved him through the portal, and the other guardians were quick to follow them, gasping at the sight that met them.  
_

"Happy April Fools…" Jack said, grinning and leaning against the wall in Fool's prank shop, where they had all appeared.  
Fool was gaping. Heck, they were all gaping, and Baby Tooth-having been in charge of this whilst the guardians distracted Fool, gave Jack a high five… or rather, she high fived his finger.  
"Nice Job Tinkerbell… Lovely touch with the glitter."  
Every prank and toy in the store was alive, clearly from a similar kind of magic as Fool had used, and the walls were covered in pink glitter, stuck on with the strongest glue Jack had been able to find.  
Confetti sprinklers had been attached to the ceiling-which Jack had done quickly before he had got changed earlier that day- and were lazily spewing confetti over the entire room, which was a chaotic mess of whistling toys, glue, what appeared to be explosions of cookie dough, piles of confetti and glitter and basically everything the fairies had been able to do from Jack's list.  
Jack grinned, opening a new portal a couple of minutes later, for them all to leave through, and turned to Fool just before he followed them, ignoring the glare.  
"Something you should know about me. When it comes to someone I care about? There is no line I won't cross. How about a decade off, then it's you versus me. No bringing the others into this and nothing ridiculously across the line. Aside from that, everything goes..."  
"Oh, I'm looking forward to it Frost. Let's make it a tradition, shall we?"  
"It will terrify the spirit population…"  
"Isn't that the whole point?"  
"You're not the nicest guy sometimes, ya know that?"  
"And you are?"  
"… Good point. Have fun clearing up!"  
Jack grinned, leaping through the portal and letting it close, before getting roped into a mass of hugs and cheers and whoops, as he realised that not only were the guardians there, but also Clover, Iceman, Shady and several others who had wanted to see the outcome of the morning.

A couple of hours later, he had changed out of his outfit into his usual clothes, and sighed as he slumped onto the sofa in the study, letting Baby Tooth nestle into his hair.  
The guardians were all looking at him oddly, and he realised what they were asking.  
"Yes… We've arranged a rematch. Ten years to this day… Have to have a decent amount of plan and prep time after all. Me versus him only, and no holding back… Though we're going to have to set some ground rules…"  
North sighed.  
"I shall get started on new bunker da?"  
Jack grinned, not sure whether to be dreading or looking forward to it, and nodded.  
"Might be a good plan…"  
_

April Fool was still busy trying to sort the mess out, but found himself grinning as he did so.  
To be perfectly honest, to have someone like Frost as an opponent was exceedingly refreshing. Hmm… He would have to meet up soon and discuss the finer details. After all, they couldn't have the world falling into ruin, could they?  
Now… where were those plans for the prank war-machine…?

* * *

******Sorry for any offense given in the Yo Momma jokes section, for example with the religiousy kind of bits. None was intended, and I apologise for any that was taken... **

* * *

**Hulk (Having just appeared from the various combined efforts of those readers that wanted him here): Much amusement from the puny creatures… Though angsty it may be at times...  
Me: OI! Be nice...  
Pitch Black: Yeah! Be ni-  
Me: Don't mimic me.  
Pitch: Why? What're you gonna do about-  
Me: Hey, Hulk? Wanna smash?  
Hulk: Hulk always wanna smash!  
Me: *points to Pitch* Then smash away.  
Hulk: *looks at Pitch, then simply steps on him* Squash like puny insect… Hulk do good?  
Me: (to you guys) What do you think? Hulk do good? Review and let me know! And if you could let me know what you thought of the chapter too, and your thoughts on me doing some random fic based solely on these footnotes, I'd appreciate it too, Lol :D  
Vader: Lol? What is this Lol you speak of?  
Me: It stands for laugh out loud.  
Master Shifu: Laughter? I've never heard of it… (Please tell me somebody gets this reference?)  
Vader: Me neither… What is this laughter?  
Me: *sighs* It's gonna be a long day… Oh, wait! I'm the author! I can fix this! *grabs phone and dials a number* Hey Jack, Need a favour… There are two people here who have never heard of laughter, and as the guardian of fun and all-  
Jack: *having just leapt through a portal and snapped the phone shut* Where are they?  
Me: The little furry red panda and the huge hulking mass of leather.  
Vader: Oi!  
Shifu: Oi!  
Jack! Oi to the both of you, now come with me!  
Me: *as Jack leaves* Better follow… Else he might bring out the *gulps dramatically* blasters… *Then grins* Oh, I could teach him to use a light saber!  
(and it seems my journey along the path of insanity is nearly complete… Teaching Jack to use a light saber? Moon help us all…)**

**Till next time then guys! Oh, and If I ever write about Fool again, it will be in a sequel fic, If I do one. And I'm sorry this wasn't as funny as the last(I was tempted to put more Yo Mamma jokes in, but it was getting out of hand as it was) and that there were less pranks by Jack, but it just didn't seem to want to be written that way… Hope you enjoyed anyway…?**


	36. Bookworm

**Okay, this idea for yet another side of Jack was given in a guest review. I don't know if you are still reading, Manna, but if you are, thanks for the idea!  
And this is going to be very, very, very, veeeeeryyyyyy short, sorry about that. First, I didn't want it to evolve into something else, and second, I really am short on time and what-not right now with exams and things...  
_**

**Shifu: Speaking of exams, I have one for the furious five. Master Yoda, we shall commence our sparring in due course, I assume?  
Yoda: *snores*  
Shifu: *rolls eyes and twirls staff* I will be seeing you Master Raven.**  
**Me: Farewell Master Shifu…**  
**Vader (after Shifu has vanished): *snorts* That was far too polite for you.**  
**Me: No, I'm polite to people I like. Or people I do not wish to annoy. You fall into the 'I wish to annoy you' catagory...**  
**Vader: Likewise.**  
**Me: You can try…**  
**Vader: I shall… *starts making popping noises, (having recently had a chat with donkey…) which are all the more irritating for the heavy breathing which accompanies them***  
**Me: *gradually getting more and more annoyed, before finally snapping* That's it! Jack! May the force be with you… Now go shut him up!**  
**Jack: *armed with an ice blue lightsaber that I have trained him with-thanks to my most recent bout of insanity-, grins, and turns to Vader***  
**Vader: *pulls out own lightsaber, then blinks as several elves all run out armed with miniature ones, then turns to me, looking terrified* Raven? What have you done…?**  
**Me: *grins maniacally* INSANITY IS FUN! THE ELVES HAVE LIGHTSABERS! ATTACK MY MINIONS!**  
***breaks out of this particular bout of insanity long enough to blink and head butt the wall for having the most ridiculous idea in history, then shrugs and grins as Vader is chased from the room by a hoard of elves yelling high pitched war cries*  
_**

**Oh, and thanks to Taiyo-chan the Neko Writer, ToiletBrushCat, Killuaxme, sarafine-ecleips, ReadAndWriteButMostlyRead, Lovepuppy316, 1visible, Winter-Freak, starskulls, and Sylvery for the faves and/or follows!**

**Cheers guys!  
****Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Read it... Read it... Read it... Ooh, Shakespeare! Oh, Read it... Read it... Film adaptation was better... Read it... Read it... Over-rated... Far too much romance... Not enough action... Read it... Read it... Read it... Hmm, I could reread? Nah, bad enough the first time... Read it... Read it... Should never have been published... Read it... Read it... Ooh, this one's new, oh, no wait, just a rewrite. And written by _him_? No thanks... Read it... Read it... Read it... Read it... Inspired it... Read it... Historically inaccurate... Read it so many times I could probably recite it... Read it... Can translate into three different languages, nope, wait, four... Film was better... Read it... Read it... Read it... The original version was better... Read it... Read it... Read-Oh, hey Tooth!"  
Tooth was staring at him, open mouthed, as the winter spirit went back and forth across the huge bookcases in her library.  
Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"You okay Tooth?"  
She blinked, closing her mouth, and nodded.  
"Yeah, I'm good. You keep looking."  
He stared at her for a few more seconds, before shrugging and turning back to the bookcase, running his hand along the spines of the books.  
"Read it... Read it... Read it... Oh man, this is his worst book ever!... Read it... Read it... Hmm, has its merits... Not in the mood... Read it... Read it... Read it... Again, do these people _never_ read up on their_ history_?... Read it... Read it..."

Tooth was still staring as she watched the spirit go backwards and forwards, and shook her head, completely dumbfounded. She prided herself on having one of the largest libraries in the world, and yet the youngest guardian seemed to be more knowledgeable than even her about some of the things in this room. Especially the classics.  
Jack gave a happy 'Aha!' as he pulled a book from the shelf.  
"Read it, but you can never go wrong with Dickens. Hey, Tooth? Are you sure you're okay?"  
He looked concerned, and she simply blinked again, before shrugging and sighing.  
"Who'd have thought it... The guardian of fun, the immature prankster, the act-now-think-later, 'youngest amongst ancient guardians' spirit... A bookworm."  
Jack blinked, then raised an eyebrow.  
"Hmm... Never thought about it like that before."  
Tooth sighed.  
"You play music, can speak in dozens of different languages, are trained in a ridiculous amount of fighting styles, can paint, can draw, can cook, can dance, can do maths, science, geography... Is there anything you _can't_ do Jack?"  
He thought for a moment, then grinned, shrugging.  
"Act my age?"  
With that, he flew out, rolling his eyes, and Tooth found herself grinning too.  
Yet another thing to add to the list... She had to tell North.  
_

Okay, that was it.  
As North added bookworm to the growing list of talents and abilities Jack had revealed, he grabbed another sheet of paper.  
"Right. This insanity has gone on for long enough! We must make list of things, to see if Jack can do them. We will discover all of his hidden abilities before this year is out!"  
Bunny sighed, and he and Tooth shared a look.  
"But mate, it's gone halfway through the year already!"  
"Challenge accepted! Now come, give me ideas!"  
They sighed, but did as he had said.

North finally dropped the pen onto the desk and grinned at the huge list of things, starting to read.  
"Canoeing, rock climbing, knitting, calligraphy, lion taming-"  
"Hey, North? We don't wanna hear the results of your sugar-overload induced, spiralling descent into insanity, a'right?" _(1)_  
Bunny said, rolling his eyes, and the Russian gave him an indignant look.  
"Is not insanity. Is quest for knowledge."  
Sandy flew in, and blinked as he saw the list, smiling as Tooth explained, then he jabbed at one of the things and formed a tick.  
North raised an eyebrow.  
"He can do that? You've seen it?"  
Sandy nodded, and mimed crossing it off, which North did.  
"Okay, scratching off Lion Taming..."

When Jack entered his room later, he found a checklist tacked onto his wall.  
He sighed as he read the accompanying note.  
_"Jack,  
I shall discover these secret abilities you have been hiding! Please gather evidence and tick the boxes. Unless you are busy. For which we will accept witness statements and testimonies.  
North."_  
Jack blinked. Alright then. Short, to-the-point, and evidence that North was on a sugar high again.  
Great.  
He quickly scanned the list, and started grinning, as he realised that he would not be bored for at least three or four weeks.  
This was gonna be fun... When he didn't have to worry about the damned Ice Spirit that is.  
He sighed... The guy was starting to ruin the fun of the guardian of fun.  
Not a good idea.  
Little did Jack know that Ice Black would soon do something that would make everything else utterly redundant...

* * *

**(1) Sound familiar? Only you guys seem to _enjoy_ hearing about my sugar-overload induced spiralling descent into insanity…**

**Yeah, I know. Slightly crackish, but I think it's the pressure I'm under at the moment. I think I needed to vent... And really short as well, but hope you guys enjoyed it all the same?  
And as for the slight Cliffie? Just… Yeah. Because I can really… No other reason…  
Please review and let me know what you thought!  
(I know… a peaceful footnote! But Vader is still being chased by elves armed with lightsabers, and Yoda is taking another nap… But don't worry, I've invited some friends to join me next chapter… and I think some of you will enjoy it :D Spoiler, arm wrestle between Optimus Prime and the Hulk… Ok, that is all…)  
_**

**Oh, and a huge thanks and welcome to Sylvery! Its great to be able to chat now ****:D**

**And Starskulls, Long time no see! How ya doing buddy?**


	37. High Spirited Fun

**-Maddie (Guest) "… could you do a chapter with Jack and animals?"  
Yes. Yes I can. And here it is buddy! As well as another thing that has been a popular idea, so enjoy!**

**-Ella (guest reviewer) I do that too, Lol :D **** And I'll see what I can do, because I can see Jack doing that *faraway look* Glad you're enjoying the fic!**

**Oh, and thanks to yamiyugi23, VladTheImpaler413, The Dangerous One, thepumpkinqueen712, toothlessisepic (so true, buddy, Lol :D), 0FrozenFire0, nafara, BeautifulHalfBlood and Lunrav14 for the faves and/or follows!**

**And, as always, though I completely forget pretty much all the time, cookies for everyone! *throws handfuls of Jack's best cookies… then blinks* Oh, and, because I haven't done one in Moon knows how long…  
Discalimer… I don't own ROTG, the characters, the places, yada yada you know the rest :D**

* * *

Jack sighed as he lounged in a tree.  
Yeah, a tree. Because A, he couldn't be bothered to move and B, he… couldn't be bothered to move.  
Plus he was comfortable.  
And if the guardians wanted to find him, they could just… do something.  
He didn't know…  
He was just…  
What was he?  
Jack sighed. He was tired, yes. He was very tired, and also frustrated, angry, worried… Why didn't Ice Black just bloody attack and cause some trouble already?  
More avalanches, more frozen roads, more accidents… He was baiting him, but the other guardians had convinced him to take things carefully.  
Plus he had spent the rest of the day making it snow, and making it snow and making it snow and it was just so bloody monotonous! Bunny was likewise tired, especially after Easter, and, though Jack knew the Pooka would try and get his spirits up if he knew what was wrong, he didn't want to interrupt his rest. It was too hot to visit the palace, and, to be honest, Jack really could not be bothered to fly that far anyway… Of course, he could go to visit North… and Iceman… Shady… Gale… Flow… Anybody really, but he just could not find it in himself to bother.  
Hmm… Maybe this was his mind's way of telling himself to have some time alone…?  
He could understand that…  
He used to like being alone. Still did, whenever he got the chance. Which wasn't very often.  
But this would be the first time I a long time he actually had a_ choice_ as to whether to spend a while on his own… And he wasn't sure he could remember how.  
It used to be that he would just sit and think… But if he started thinking now, what with everything Ice Black was doing, the chances were he'd do something that most would consider stupid and reckless. It used to be that he wouldn't have given a damn. Now he did…  
It used to be… It used to be…

Had he really changed that much? Many had said so, but he had never seen it himself… Until now.  
He had changed… And true, he liked it. He liked it a lot… But it… Sometimes…  
Jack sighed as he hopped down from the tree and started pacing.  
Yes, he preferred things now to how they were. Of course he did! He had friends, family, believers, people who actually gave a damn what happened to him…  
But sometimes, he couldn't help but feel smothered.  
With that thought, he sank down against the trunk of a tree, and sighed.  
What with everything, he just wanted to scream in frustration… But the last time he had done that, the wind had decided to create a snow hurricane around him, unsure of what was wrong.  
So he just sat there, thinking, and subsequently trying not to think.

It was about half an hour later, when Jack had just given up, and was meditating to try and wipe his mind clean, when he felt something small, warm and furry pressing against his leg.  
Opening his eyes, he smiled when he saw it was a small rabbit, and started stroking it behind the ears. He wasn't quite sure why, but he had always had an affinity with animals… Not just arctic ones, but all kinds. The small rabbit soon hopped onto his lap, and nestled into his hoody.  
Another thing too, the presence of animals had always seemed to calm him.  
Maybe because they had always seemed so innocent… And so undemanding…  
Before long, that one rabbit was joined by a couple of others, and Jack ended up letting the small bundles of fur and the sounds of the forest lull him to sleep.  
_

Lily grinned as she stroked the small deer. She had been following this one all day…  
Then she blinked as it perked its ears up, before trotting away. Deciding to follow, the spirit eventually blinked as she caught sight of Jack, sleeping and clearly exhausted from what she could see. And also half buried in dozing rabbits.  
Hmm, the fact that he seemed unaware of that fact would also hold testament to the fact that he was more exhausted than Lily had ever seen him.  
Gently shooing the small bundles away from him, she settled down and decided to just stay till he woke up. Then whack him across the head for being an idiot and not getting enough sleep.

It was well gone into the evening when Jack finally opened his eyes, and he blinked a few times to get things into focus before he took in the small weight on his shoulder, and looked down to see that Lily was there, sleeping.  
Why did he so often wake up being unable to explain things?  
Jack sighed, nudging her.  
"Hey, Lil?"  
"Hmm?" She said, blearily, stretching, and then blinked.  
"Oh, you're awake."  
"Evidently…"  
Whack.  
"Hey!"  
"That's for being a smartass."  
Whack.  
"OW!"  
"And that's for not getting enough sleep."  
"Alright, alright! Not my fault everything seems to be crashingdown! Moon…"  
"Maybe not, but when I see the guardians, I'm telling Sandy to knock you out…"  
"… Okay, now that is _not_ necessary."  
"Really? Because you didn't seem to know that you were half buried beneath rabbits."  
"… Oh."  
"Yeah. So feel like telling me what's up?"  
"Nothing- Okay! Stop hitting me! I'm just tired and feeling a little smothered and worried about Ice Black, that's all. I'm fine, honest."  
"That's fine to you?"  
"Err… Yeah?"  
"You can be such an idiot sometimes…"  
"Aww, thanks…"  
"Wasn't a compliment!"  
"But it was compli-"  
"_Complimentary_, yeah. I know… Anyway, who knew that older brother figures need so much looking after…"  
"Hey! I am _not_ that bad Lil-"  
"Then go and do something fun."  
"What?"  
"You're the guardian of fun, and you're moping."  
"I am not moping-"  
"And worrying about something he can't change. Now go do something fun."

Jack blinked, wondering when the younger spirit had gotten so bossy, and, slowly, an idea formed and a smile grew on his face.  
"Hey, Lily? How would you like to meet Sophie and Jamie? And the other kids from Burgess? I haven't visited in a few weeks…"  
Lily grinned, hopping to her feet and tugging Jack to his.  
"What are we waiting for?! Let's get the others and go!"  
_

Jack rolled his eyes, lounging against a tree, as Lily dragged Flow out to join Shady, Iceman and Clover. Jack had simply given them an apologetic shrug, nodding towards Lily in a _'well, what can ya do'_ way, and getting '_fair point'_ looks in return.  
All in all, it was early afternoon before they finally arrived in Burgess, and Jack prepared himself for the excitable onslaught he was about to receive from Sophie before tapping on the window.  
Jamie opened it, and grinned when Jack told him he had some friends they might like to meet.  
It wasn't long before several kids arrived in the small clearing, and Sophie broke the slight awkwardness by running forward to the deer Lily was stroking, and cooing over it.  
Funnily enough, they immediately gravitated to each other. Iceman and Shady got talking to Jamie and the rest of the guys about the kind of stuff their powers can do, whilst Flow and Clover ended up with most of the girls. Cupcake, though Jack was not at all surprised, ended up being taught a few karate moves by Gale, and he grinned as he flopped down against a tree,  
He didn't notice when Lily started to spread a message throughout the group, and didn't notice when it reached Iceman.  
He did notice, however, when a load of ice were dropped down the back of his hoody.

He shook them out, yelping in surprise. The cold might not bother him, but that had sure as hell startled him, and he span, raising an eyebrow at Iceman, who slowly took a step back.  
"Hey, now… It wasn't _entirely_ my fault… Honest-"  
Too late. He got pelted by a hailstorm of snowballs, and when he poked his head out of the snowdrift that had formed around him, he glared at Jack.  
"Oh, it is all the way on-"  
"I'd hoped you'd say that…"  
Within seconds, the entire clearing was filled with piles of snowballs, and they gravitated into three teams without thinking.  
Girls vs guys vs Jack…  
Jack grinned as he propped the staff against a tree and pulled his sleeves up, causing the other spirits to groan and arm themselves with everything from swirling leaves to shoots of clovers, much to the kids delight. This was going to be fun…

For nearly an hour they kept up their battle. Snowballs flew everywhere, clovers grew and tangled around feet, leaves surrounded someone, making them spin and fall, completely dizzy.  
But there efforts were in vain. Jack, Jamie and Sophie having decided to turn traitor twenty minutes in and help him, was setting snow trap after snow trap, throwing snowballs with uncanny aim, ambushing people as they dodged behind various trees and generally being a one-man force to be reckoned with. Jamie was simply 'accidentally' hitting people with snowballs-making sure they believed he was still on their side- and only got discovered when he was seen deliberately aiming at Iceman.  
Of course, the rest of his erstwhile team got him covered in snow, and, from then on, Jack decided on all-out war. Which meant they won.  
He and Jamie high fived amidst a scene of carnage. Snow everywhere, both covering everyone and in half melted puddles, exhausted children and spirits laying against trees and on the floor, Iceman was still frozen in a snow drift, which Jack decided to let melt naturally and Shady was still trying to get out of the clover trap Clover had sprung up around him, and was finally making some headway against it.  
Sophie, on the other hand, had been sticking to her own agenda, and had absolutely no snow covering her, having hidden in a bush-under Jack's orders- and had been given a constant supply of snowballs, which she put to good use by hitting everyone as they ran past.  
Basically, as Shady summed up when he finally broke free, he had no intention of messing with _that _family unit…

It was late afternoon when the day came to an end for them, and that was with Jack over-hearing, from the news on Jamie's TV, that a nearby mountain range was experiencing tremors with a risk of avalanches. However, as he said goodbye, and most of the spirits head off themselves, Lily actually decided to stay, and Jack grinned as he finally left, having seen all of the others home and telling Lily he'd be back in a couple of hours to head back with her, as her and Sophie began talking avidly about woodland animals.  
Seems like today had been one of the best ideas he'd ever had…  
Now then, about those avalanches…  
Jack sighed as he flew off. Pretty much every other day had culminated in him taking avalanche checks. He just wished that Ice Black would actually show himself…  
No matter what he did, where he visited or who he talked to, he couldn't seem to figure out where the ice spirit was.  
_

Jack was relieved that, this time, there was no evidence of Ice or anything, like that, out of the ordinary, but stayed for an hour to make sure, before he flew back.  
He ended up being roped into a game of twister by Jamie and the two girls, which he subsequently lost as Sophie sabotaged him, making Lily the winner, and he retaliated by tickling her. It was only when their mother told them that it was time for them to get some sleep that they both left, and Jack grinned as he said goodnight to Lily, after they had both casually drifted back to her home.  
The younger spirit had enjoyed herself, and her and Sophie had formed a firm friendship, despite the over 200 year age gap. Apparently, rabbits were very good for bringing people together…  
Lily laughed at that, and gave Jack a hug before he flew off.  
Deciding that maybe he should actually get some sleep, and knowing that if he went to the Pole, he would end up getting roped into something or other, he head back to his own place, and said hi to Ben, one of the Yeti's he had nicknamed and who was acting as a kind of caretaker for the place whilst also trying to stop his young children from tearing it apart, before he let himself drop onto his bed.

It wasn't long before he was asleep and Sandy, sensing this a few hundred miles away, carefully selected a dream to shoot towards Jack. The golden guardian had a backlog of dreams for the spirit, and had been close to blasting him with dream sand to get him to sleep, so was happy to see that he wouldn't have to…  
After kll, the last time he'd done that, Jack had blasted him with a paint gun that had been magically modified, and his sand had been blue that night…  
Even _now_, he still had no idea how, on Moon, Jack had done it.  
Ah well, with the plan North had for later that year, and with the plans that he, Bunny and Tooth had added to and embellished it with, the youngest guardian would need all the sleep he could get…  
Then Sandy blinked… Oh, please Moon say that none of that had leaked into the dream?  
_

When Jack opened his eyes the following morning, he frowned…  
Hadn't there been something about a prank war or something…?  
Hmm... Well, you never _could_ be too prepared after all...

* * *

**Okay, first things first, I'm afraid no love interests are going to occur between Jack and any of the other spirits I've mentioned . **_**Maybe **_**a love interest will develop **_**if**_** I do a sequel, but not in this fic.**

**Vader: Hey, that sounded really harsh, the way you said that.  
Me: What? *rereads it* Damn, it kinda does… Sorry about that guys…  
Vader: READ ALL ABOUT IT! RAVEN DEVELOPS MANNERS!  
Me: *glares at him* I'll have you know that the only one I don't tend to act polite with is you. And that is because it is far more amusing for me not to.  
Vader: Or, we could just be friendly?  
Me: Have you read your character description? You single handedly demolished the entire Republic! You tried to kill Kenobi! You went completely evil! You-  
Vader: Okay, point taken! But I turned back to the light side in the end.  
Me: Well, your choice, do you want to remain a Sith Lord in the footnotes, or be Anakin again?  
Vader: … Can I keep the name Vader **_**and **_**drop the Sith Lord?  
Me: … Yoda?  
Yoda: No problem with this do I have.  
Me: Then yes.  
Vader: *fist pumps* Yeah! Now I can go do some random flying manoeuvres without being obligated to destroy people! *runs from room excitedly*  
Me: Oh dear Moon, what have I done?  
Kenobi: You have set him on the path of the light side-  
Me: I know **_**that! **_**But now I have to control Anakin Vader!  
Kenobi: Well, there is an easy way to-  
Me: You have no right to instruct me. Seeing how badly you did the job.  
Kenobi: …  
Yoda: …  
Iron Man/Tony Stark: … Too far.  
Me: Okay, maybe a little… But what the hell are you doing here Stark?  
Tony: I am your conscience.  
Me and everyone else who has starred in a footnote: *pause* *longer pause* *Bursts out laughing*  
Me: *Between gasps, and attempting to wipe tears from my eyes and actually breathe* So… What did… you think guys? Please… Please review and… Oh hahahaha… Haha, yeah… Just let me… *snorts* Oh you know the drill… *falls over due to laughing so hard*  
Tony: I really do not see what is so funny about me being somebody's conscience…  
Me: Just… just… *sniggers* Just… stuff… Till *hiccups, then giggles* Till next time guys :D**


	38. Sugar Rush (Need I Say More?)

**Vader/Anakin/Whatever: Why Hello Readers. I am afraid Raven is not currently present, -having gone to try and escape her conscience who happens to be exceedingly irritating- and, as such, has left the running of this fore note to me. No, I cannot understand it either, aside from maybe it's because I am no longer evil…? Anyway, as per her request, I have just let things take themselves where they want to go, and… well… *looks over to huge reinforced table* Things have most assuredly taken their own way-  
Hulk: Silence puny leather slab!  
Vader: Oi!  
Optimus Prime: Hulk, I believe there is this thing that the humans call courtesy. And manners…  
Hulk: Hulk need no manners! Hulk Smash!  
Optimus: *looks down to where they are locked in a stalemate in an arm wrestle* Well, Hulk does not look to be smashing…  
Bumblebee: *makes various noises*  
R2D2: *Rolls in and also makes various noises*  
Vader: *sigh* so much for two fandoms at a time… I will have to talk with Raven about- But that can wait. I have been ordered to tell you to… err… *takes out piece of paper* Enjoy the chapter and forgive her for leaving you with such a terrible introductee… Oh, that's rude…  
Oh, and to say thank you to thunder angel13, Harmonious Wolf, Summer Evening, Scavenger'sDaughter2, SilverMoonNight, AngelofGrace96, 2Pcanada and Phoenixtear101 for the faves and follows… And thanks to the guest reviewer, rotgfan, who wrote the 500th review!  
Okay, I think that's it… So, enjoy the chapter!  
_**

* * *

Bunny sighed as he leapt into the warren. North had, yet again, got him into an argument about Christmas apparently being better than Easter. Which it was most definitely not!  
But this time he had brought in the eggs, and that was taking things too far…  
This time, he was going to get him back for it… But how…?  
It took him a whole three seconds to come up with a plan.  
Four words.  
Jack Frost-Sugar High.  
He could call it Operation Sugar!  
It was genius!

Of course, that would mean dragging Jack away from whatever he was doing, which was most likely centered around Ice Black… But the winter spirit had been on the case for weeks, and hadn't managed to catch up with the Ice Spirit… Though there had been some close calls.  
Like the time a couple of weeks ago when Jack managed to save a couple of humans when their car got sent into a spin thanks to Ice Black leaving Ice on the road. If Jack hadn't have had to stop to help them, he would likely have caught the Ice Spirit there and then…  
But they all knew Ice Black was simply making sure he was ready to move, and knew that he would eventually do something to draw them all out...  
Till then, there was little they could do, and Bunny was going to use that to his advantage…  
Now, how to get Jack on a sugar high?  
Hmm… Maybe one of those drinks humans called energy drinks? Full of caffeine too, which would be a bonus… But how to get some…  
Bunny grinned as an idea formed, and leapt through another tunnel.  
_

Jamie blinked at the Pooka.  
"You want me to get energy drinks, so you can get Jack on a caffeine rush, to set him on North to cause havoc because Easter is better than Christmas?"  
Bunny nodded.  
Jamie sighed, grumbling about insane Pooka's, then he grinned.  
"Okay… I'll see what I can do…"

Half an hour later, Jamie handed him a bag full.  
"Good thing I started that Paper round… And be careful. From what I've seen, too much of this stuff can make you go completely caffeine high…"  
Jamie shuddered as he thought back to the month before, when Cupcake drank several cans of the stuff and went on a giggling spree… It was not a pleasant memory… And with Jack in that state…?  
Moon help them all, as the guardians would say…  
Bunny however, looked delighted.  
"Cheers mate… This is gonna be great!"  
Jamie sighed…  
"For you maybe…"

Bunny grinned as leapt from a tunnel into Jack's home, with the bag of energy drinks.  
Phase 1 of Operation Sugar complete…  
_

Bunny grinned as he lounged against the pillar, in the training room at the monastery, coughing for attention. Jack span, grinning.  
"Hey… What bring you up to the, and I quote, 'place where you're more likely to get your tail frozen off than anything'…?"  
Bunny rolled his eyes.  
"I need… a _favour_? Yeah let's go with that."  
Jack shot him a suspicious look, and crossed his arms.  
"Go on…"  
"I need ya to drink all 'a these energy drinks, then go an' annoy North."  
Jack blinked.  
"… Did he insult Easter again?"  
"… That's beside the point."  
"But… Hang on, where did you get those, anyway?"  
"Jamie… And ya wouldn't want it all ta be wasted… would ya?"  
"…That's just mean. Guilt tripping is _my_ thing…"  
"Aww, come on! Please…?"  
"The giant bunny rabbit said please? Just _what_ did he say about Easter?"  
"… He mocked the googies."  
Jack blinked, then sighed, grabbing a can of the drink and popping the lid.  
"I just know I'm going to regret this... You owe me, Kangaroo."  
"Yeah, yeah… Though to be honest, I've lost track of who owes who…"  
Jack blinked at that.  
"Huh… You're right. Too many favours flying around…" He grinned, taking a mouthful, and blinked.  
"Mm… Not half bad actually. Remind me to pay Jamie back for these?"  
Bunny grinned. Phase Two of Operation Sugar was a go.  
"Sure thing… Now go annoy North!"  
Jack sighed, following Bunny into a tunnel.  
They really had to discuss boundaries. Come on, putting him on a caffeine high to annoy North must cross some kind of line…? Ah well… Too late now.  
Jack felt a familiar tingle buzzing at the back of his head as he started the next can, familiar even though he hadn't felt it since the sugar high that time nearly a century ago…  
This was going to be fun…  
_

"Neeeeeeeeoooooowwwwm…"

"Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"

"Neeeeeeeeeoooowwwwwwmmmmmmmmmmmmmmma…"

North winced. For the past hour, Jack had been flying around him, making the most irritating noises he could. And all because Bunny was far too much of a bad influence.

The Pooka had vanished half an hour before, in the midst of a laughing fit, and left North with a caffeine High winter spirit, who happened to be the guardian of fun.  
Well, everyone else might be having fun-  
" … Teeheehee, Caffeine is goooood…" Jack said, smirking and spinning in circles above North, giggling suspiciously.  
"Hey... Hey North!"  
"… What…?"  
"I think I know how Fool enchanted the toys!"  
North blinked. _Oh no_…  
"Jack…? You didn't-"  
"Heehee, too l_aaaa_ate!"

Planes, walking soldiers, slingshots, miniature tanks, spinning tops and an array for other toys all surrounded North, whistling, beeping, thrumming, marching and otherwise making the most irritating noises known to spirit.  
He was going to get Bunny for this…  
Jack was laughing outright as he vanished into a tunnel, reappearing a few minutes later with a grinning Pooka, who took one look at the sight, including North trying to battle his way out of a hurricane of toy planes, before he fell about laughing.  
Phase 3 of Operation Sugar Rush -nicknamed Operation Buzz, for many reasons- securely underway, and mission complete.  
Of course, Tooth chose this moment to arrive, and as soon as she took it all in, and heard the words _Frostbite…_ _Caffeine…_ and _Funny…_ from Bunny in explanation, she attempted, in vain, to stop the giggle that fought its way out, before ending up in a laughing fit on the floor next to Bunny.

North, on the other hand, was scowling at them.  
"Oh, so you are two of most old guardians, and you act immature?"  
Tooth giggled, trying to speak,  
"Well… What can you… you do against… the guardian of… f-fun…" she managed, between hiccups and giggles, before she once again lost the power of speech.  
North sighed.  
"At least Sandy would show more maturity-"  
"Actually…" Bunny said, gesturing, and North span to see the oldest guardian in the grips of a silent laughing fit, watching as North tried to dodge the toys and bubble and paint blasting planes and tanks.  
Jack grinned, whispering to Sandy as he flew backwards and forwards, and Sandy grinned, clicking his fingers to start some music.  
"Flight of Valkyries? Much maturity Sandy…" North said, rolling his eyes, and Jack grinned.  
"Caffeine is good… I wonder why I stopped taking Caffeine? And too much sugar?"  
Sandy sighed something, and Jack crossed his arms in a huff.  
"It does_ not _make me act immature!"  
North chuckled.  
"Only thing missing from that was a foot stomp in middle of air, Jack."  
Jack scowled at him, then grinned.  
"Well… maybe more will do it…"  
"More… What?"  
"EVERYTHING!"  
More planes and toys and elves armed with cookie blasters- North blinked at that one… Did caffeine make people insane…?- appeared, and Jack settled on a beam, opening another can of the caffeinated, sugar overloaded, insanity inducing concoction, downing it in a few mouthfuls.  
North groaned.  
He would never insult Easter again…  
Especially when Bunny had Jack on his side. It made for a completely unfair advantage…  
Though that thought was pushed to the back of his mind as he was forced to retreat, elves and toys following him and blasting him with bubble, paint and cookies.  
Sugar _Free_ Cookies… North realised with a sigh.  
The youngest guardian really _did_ think of everything…  
_

Jack groaned as he pulled his way out of the snowdrift.  
A few hours earlier, the caffeine had started to wear off, and he had dived out of the window before the headache could start. But now he was tired, and achy, and man, that had been so much fun!  
With a cheerful whistle, he leapt up to the window, letting the wind carry him in, before landing on the sofa, right next to Tooth, who gave a startled yelp, before grinning.  
"You feeling a bit less… active now, Sweet Tooth?"  
"Yup…"  
North gave a sigh of relief.  
"Thank Moon. I was not sure of whether I could take more…"  
Bunny grinned.  
"Plus, he's gonna be thinking a nit more in future, before he insults Easter, eh mate?"  
North nodded.  
"Much thinking. You have unfair advantage Bunny."  
"But an advantage all the same. Cheers Jack."  
"No Problem… Now I'm gonna go and pay Jamie back, before crashing and sleeping for the next twelve hours. See ya later guys."  
With that, he flew out, and North blinked.  
"Actually, I have better plan. Caffeine makes Jack want to sleep?"  
Bunny sighed, as he realised where this was going.  
"But only as a last resort… I mean, there's no telling what end of chaos could ensue…"  
Tooth rolled her eyes.  
"And yet we are still planning on challenging him to a prank war?"  
The others shrugged, and Tooth sighed.  
She just hoped Jack didn't get hold of caffeine when it began…  
_

Jack grinned, as he left Jamie's, before heading back to the monastery. Electronic ways of handling money were so useful to spirits… What was the betting that some spirit had got involve with the ideas process?

Anyway, as he sank down onto the bed, yawning, he blinked as he realised that he hadn't thought about Ice Black all day…  
And Bunnymund called _him_ a distraction.  
Ah well, Ice Black would no doubt try something eventually… And he'd be there when he did.  
_

Ice Black grinned, as he watched Jamie, Sophie and their mother get into the car, before sliding towards the main road…  
If this didn't get Jack Frost's undivided attention, he didn't know what would…

* * *

**Vader: *still watching arm wrestle, which is still at a stalemate* Yes, I really do need to talk about letting in more than two fandoms… Now where is Raven?  
Me (having just walked in): Right here… Sorry I took so long. How has… *takes in scene, and glares at Optimus* What have I told you about drawing in Hulk's competitive streak?  
Optimus: Err…  
Ironhide: *mutters* Haha, smackdown…  
Me: Shut up.  
Ironhide: *Shuts up.*  
Me: And anyway, as a regular reader, Querty, has reminded me, only _two_ fandoms! There are _three_ here right now-  
The Doctor: (having just arrived in the Tardis) Hello again, All!  
Me: *sighs* Make that **_**four**_** fandoms… Hey, Doc? I'm trying to enforce the two fandoms at a time rule here…  
Doctor: Ah, I see. Very well. Allonsy! *vanishes in Tardis with a grin that makes me instantly suspicious for some reason…*  
Me: Right…  
Vader: You know, it may be an idea to maybe bump it up to three fandoms?  
Me: … I have an idea. How about I bump it up to three fandoms?  
Vader: *Facepalms*  
Me: *glances over to stalemate, and rolls eyes, walking over*  
Optimus: Fine, I call a tie…  
Me: *calls on author powers as Hulk starts to rant about a rematch, and slams both Optimus's and Hulk's fists down* There. Now**_** I**_** win, happy? *ignores the looks I'm getting, and whispers to Megatron (who called a temporary truce to see Optimus get smacked down in an arm wrestle)*  
Psst, hey! Megatron!  
Megatron: What?  
Me: Ya might want to take a look at a certain Night-Fury1's profile… A very interesting fic on there if I do say so myself… *grins evilly* (don't worry guys, it's a kind of inside joke… And now I am going to hide from the wrath of Night-Fury1… WHO WOULDN'T SHARE BUNNY!)**

**Till next time then! **

**Raving… I mean Raven… Mad… Raving mad? No… Raven. There we go.  
*blinks as Tony enteres the room, and legs it*  
NO! I DON'T WANT MY CONSCIENCE ON MY BACK! THAT SUIT IS HEAVY! AND IT TOOK LONG ENOUGH TO WRITE THE LAST CHAPTER AT THE SAME TIME AS RUNNING FROM HIM!  
(Yes, I'm blaming the delay in updates on my conscience… And most stylish exit yet I think, right?)  
And hey! Where is R2?**

_**Meanwhile… In the Tardis**_

**Doctor: Are you sure you can fly this?  
R2D2: *Makes chirpy sounds and what-not*  
Doctor: Okay then… But Raven will not be happy… Now she'll have to sort out the entire multi-fandom universal crossover time space continuum section three, paragraph two, part seven… Thing… Ah well, We can visit her again next chapter… Now… TO CORUSCANT!**

* * *

***(Oh, and 500+ reviews? I love you guys! Seriously, you are all amazing and you have no idea how shocked I am… Even after everything, I'm still shocked at the response, so thank you so much!  
And thanks to rotgfan, and yes, there will definitely be another prank fic after this arc :D After the Ice Black arc… WHICH WILL BEGIN NEXT CHAPTER! Hopefully see you there… :D )**


	39. Ice Black

**Kenobi: *dragging R2D2 behind him in one hand and the doctor in the other as he enters the room* Found these two on Coruscant…  
Me: Oh, thank Moon. I was just about to leave and search myself…  
Kenobi: No Problem… They only painted a giant Tardis on the side of the Jedi Temple, then went into the future and did the same with the imperial palace, then made all of the clones dress up as various versions of the doctor, then flicked back in time and I caught them about to talk to Owen Lars about getting Luke a droid for his fifth birthday. Tell you what, these timejumpy wristband thingies work wonders… And Vader! Deal with your droid, would you?  
Luke Skywalker: Hey, **_**My**_** droid!  
Vader: Nope, it was mine.  
Luke: Oh, and next I suppose you'll say you built C3PO?  
Vader: … Actually…  
Luke: *facepalm* Whatever… Come on R2… *Leaves with the droid trailing behind him, whistling*  
Me: Anyway… Now that the family Drama has been concluded… Back to the actual fic! I'll be selling Pitchforks at the end of this chapter, you'll see why…  
Vader: Pitchforks?  
Me: Yes. More effective than Lightsabers when you are in a mob.  
Vader: Ah.  
Me: Ah? That's it?  
Vader: Well the readers are going to end up hunting you down after this anyway, so I'm just gonna sit back and relax…  
Tony: Now, I still think this chapter was evil, even for you-  
Vader: *uses the force and levitates him, before throwing him into Hulk and starting a fight between the two, thus distracting Tony from trying to make me nice*  
Me: Oh… Thanks Vader. That was... Nice of you…?  
Vader: *charming smile, though it is only with Author powers that I can see it beneath the mask.*  
Me: (completely thrown off course) Right… Well, erm… Thanks to 12rp, trimonter bluedog10 and Fluffy3314 for following and/or faving and err… Enjoy? Oh, and be warned, this is very fast paced… No room for dilly-dallying!  
_**

* * *

Jamie sighed as his mother played the same song over again.  
"Mum! That's the third time!"  
She smiled, keeping her eyes on the road in front of them, but laughing.  
"Because it is a great song! Isn't it sweetie?"  
Sophie laughed, nodding, and Jamie sighed again, rolling his eyes.  
"Oh, sure. Team up on me why don't you, I- LOOK OUT!"  
A trail of ice had just covered the road, where a few moments before there had been nothing, and Jamie's mother was unable to avoid it.  
The car flew into a spin, before tumbling over once... twice... three times, before finally coming to a rest on its side.  
Jamie groaned, and managed to undo his seatbelt, falling to the floor.  
He blearily looked around, and gasped as he caught sight of his mum and sister.  
His mother was barely breathing, looking trapped beneath the mess that had been the dashboard, and Sophie didn't look to be moving.  
Jamie found he was frozen, horror struck, and something in the back of his mind told him he was going into shock.  
He barely registered when help arrived, or the noise, or the gentle handling and quiet words...  
And he welcomed the darkness that embraced him when he finally felt the pain he was in, sinking into it gratefully.

On the side of the road, out of sight, Ice Black smirked at the scene, taking small pride in his plan.  
And this way, he knew the guardian would come to him, saving him the trouble.  
That power would be in his grasp before they knew what hit them...  
_

Jack sighed as the North, Bunny and Tooth stared at him.  
"Yes, I've been hacking into the weather office's main computer, and tweaking their updates to incorporate the Avalanche warnings. It's really not all that surprising…"  
"Err… Yeah it is mate." Bunny said. "We had no idea."  
"Well, now ya know. And anyway, it's not like it's too difficult… Get a computer, charge it up at Jamie's and move it somewhere else, then reroute the signal over various states in America and log off before they can trace it. Then leave it with Shady again. And it turns out to be a good enough idea. Less people have been visiting the different mountains, and people are being more careful on the roads. They've even started gritting them…"  
Tooth laughed, giving him a hug.  
"Great idea, Sweet Tooth."

Just then, Sandy flew in, clearly out of breath, and started signing urgently to Jack.  
All the winter spirit needed were the words orphanage and Ice, before he had grabbed an orb, called a portal and leapt through. The others immediately followed, and gasped as they landed just outside the orphanage, which was slowly but surely getting buried in a snowdrift and freezing over.  
Jack cursed, raising his staff.  
Within a matter of minutes, the snowstorm had stopped, the ice had started to melt and the snow was being whipped away from the walls.  
It was only a few more moments before the area was almost completely cleared, and Jack lowered the staff.  
Then he turned, and spoke, his voice calmer than the guardians had expected.  
"Looks like Ice Black finally got bored…"  
Sandy signed something, and Jack blinked.  
"Nightmares about avalanches? Where…?"  
More signing.  
"The Alps? Shady said he heard something about that… Pitch involved?"  
Sandy shook his head and Jack blinked.  
"The caves… The old caves that the Yeti's used to use… In the Alps?"  
North blinked.  
"Have been out of use for many years."  
"Perfect for Ice Black then…"  
North nodded.  
"Very much so… We should head back to Pole."  
Jack shook his head.  
"I'll meet you there. I just want to make sure everyone here's okay. Should be back in an hour or so."

A sudden burst of sparkles had Jack falling over, and he smiled when he realised who it was.  
"Hey BT, what you doing here?"  
She chirped and Jack smiled.  
"A girl here lost a Tooth? Laura? Yeah… She's a friend."  
More chirping, and Jack nodded.  
"Sure, I'll meet you up there."  
_

Jack landed in the dormitory, after reassuring the others that he would be at the Pole within the hour, and grinned, mostly from relief, as he got mobbed by a hoard of children.  
"Hey guys... How ya doing?"  
"Good." That was Laura. "Was that you with the snow?"  
"No… Someone bad was trying to make it very cold, so I had to stop him. Now then, is everyone okay?"  
Laura nodded, and gestured wildly to Baby Tooth.  
"Is that the Tooth Fairy?"  
Jack smiled, not really surprised that the presence of the children was managing to calm him down slightly.  
"Actually, it's one of her mini fairies. She's called Baby Tooth."  
It was several more minutes before Jack could disentangle Baby Tooth from the children, and she nestled into his hair.  
Jack sighed, as he grinned.  
"Okay guys, I've gotta go. But I'll come visit soon okay? And tell Ruth I said hello…"  
Laura said she would, giving him a hug, and he waited till they were all safely in bed before leaving.  
"Okay BT, where you off to next?"  
She chirped, and Jack grinned.  
"That was one of your last calls? How many more?"  
_Two…_ _Both in this city…  
_"Well then, I can spare a few minutes…"  
Call him paranoid, but he was worried right now…

And it was only a few minutes till she was done, and Jack started towards the Pole.  
Then he blinked as the wind started nudging him in another direction, and he followed it.  
"Sorry BT… Not quite sure what it wants-"  
She nestled more snuggly into his hair, and Jack grinned, but it morphed to a frown when he landed outside Shady's place.  
"What did you bring me here for…?" Jack muttered to the wind, before heading in.  
"Shady!"  
"Jack? Oh thank Moon… I was just about to head to the Pole, when a very adamant gust of wind stopped me…"  
"What's the matter?"  
"Iceman got fed up of hearing about Ice Black… Then he heard about Jamie and Sophie and their mother-"  
"Jamie and Sophie and- wait, what?"  
"You… You haven't heard?"  
"Heard what?" Now Jack was seriously worried.  
Shady took a deep breath, and spoke, quickly and clearly.  
"You need to get back to the Pole. I won't tell you why, because I get the feeling that the guardians will soon need you back at the Pole, as you're likely to have a visitor which will most likely be Jamie. But I wanted to let you know. Iceman's head up to the range we figured Ice Black was likely to be on and-"  
"Alone?!"  
"Yes-"  
"What was he thinking!?" Jack asked, panic making his anger rear up again.  
Shady shook his head.  
"He was thinking that maybe he could give you a hand."  
"But that's… That's…" Jack took a deep breath, and sighed, getting everything straight in his head. "I need to get to the Pole, then I'm going to head straight there. Can you try to find him? Tell him to wait for me…"  
Shady nodded.  
"I was just waiting to let you know before I did. Gale and Flow pretty much had to hold Clover down to stop her going after him. It's far too cold up there for her…"  
"Yeah… Thanks Shady."  
"No Problem. Now get moving!"  
He shoved Jack towards the entrance of the cave, and started to get himself dressed for the colder weather.  
Moon knows, he was going to need it…  
_

Jamie opened his eyes to a melee of voices, beeping, and questions.  
Yes, he felt okay…  
Yes he remembered what had happened…  
Why couldn't he see his mother or sister?  
But they would be okay?  
Confusion, then relief as he realised his mother and sister would be fine, then more confusion as he tried to remember where the ice had come from.  
He knew it was important…  
Spreading out from… it had looked like a person… Dressed in black and white…  
It all came together, and he blinked. Ice Black?

He waited until later in the night, when it had all quietened slightly and he was left with the rest of the sleeping children in the ward, before he quickly got out of the bed, reaching for the jacket that they had left on the side.  
He reached inside the pocket, grabbing the orb Jack had given them, and hesitated slightly… Should he leave his family…? But he had to… he had to let the guardians know about Ice Black…  
And he wanted to see Jack.  
He threw the orb, muttering the winter spirits name, and stepped through the portal, blinking as he realised he was in the workshop, more specifically, right in front of North and Tooth.  
The two guardians started at his sudden appearance, and Tooth quickly flew over.  
"Hey, are you okay Jamie?"  
He started to nod, then changed it to a shake of his head.  
"I-Is Jack here?"  
Tooth blinked, and looked to North, who shook his head.  
"No, but will be back soon. What is matter, Jamie?"  
"He… I… He…"  
Tooth quickly guided him into a chair, starting to get seriously worried about the, normally cheerful, boy's attitude.  
Eventually, she managed to get him to tell them what had happened…

North was pacing, after Jamie had told them what had happened, but turned as Bunny spoke up.  
"This ain't gonna go down well with Jack…" He gestured for Tooth to stop, as she went to butt in, and sighed again. "Ya know what I mean. Ya know we all feel the same way Tooth, but Jack was _already_ angry about the orphanage, and if he goes after Ice Black now, he'll be headin' into a trap."  
Tooth nodded, and Sandy started gesturing, making Tooth nod again.  
"Yeah, we know Sandy… It's not like we can't tell him. We'll just have to make sure he doesn't go flying off and getting himself hurt…"  
North snorted at that.  
"And we could stop him?"  
Tooth bit her lip.

North sighed again, as they waited for Jack. Normally, when he said an hour, he was there in half. Now it was just over and they were all starting to worry.  
"Where could he be?" Tooth suddenly blurted out. "He should have been here by n-"  
"Sorry! Wind was adamant that I went to Shady's…"  
They all span as Jack landed just inside the window, frowning at the atmosphere in the room.  
"And he said something about Jamie and Sophie and-"  
"Jack!"  
Jack blinked, and nearly got knocked over as Jamie barrelled into him, before throwing his staff on the desk and returning the hug. He sent the other two a questioning look, and they shared a look before sighing.  
Jack was now even more confused than before, and crouched down to Jamie's height.  
"Hey, what's up Kiddo?"  
_

North was rocking backwards and forwards, mimicking Bunny in his nervous movements, even as Tooth was clearly only being restrained from going and hugging Jamie and Jack by Sandy's arm, and they were watching as Jack tried to keep his escalating anger in check. Jack sent North and Tooth a quick look, before he spoke, the fact that his voice was strained only apparent to the guardians because they knew him so well.  
"Okay Jamie, is it okay if North and Tooth take you back? I have some important stuff to do…"  
Plus he didn't want to end up losing it in the middle of a hospital. It was hard enough keeping it all under control as it was…  
North quickly head over as Jamie nodded, catching the secondary meaning, and grabbed another orb as Jack gave Jamie a hug.  
"Okay, now I'll come and see you as soon as I can okay?"  
"You're going after Ice Black?"  
Jack sighed as he remembered how easily Jamie picked up on things.  
"Yes."  
"Be careful…"  
"Sure thing Kiddo. Now you go get better okay? And tell Sophie I said Hi…"  
They vanished, and Jack turned to Sandy.  
"Could you get him to sleep? I don't want him feeling worse, or worrying all night…"  
Sandy nodded, following the other three through the portal.  
Jack managed to keep up the appearance of being calm until the portal closed again, then he felt his anger start to creep in.  
Bunny cursed as the room started to get colder, the wind whipping around, and leapt over to Jack, grabbing his arm.  
Damn, the spirit was cold as ice!  
"Frostbite?"  
"What?"  
"Ya need to calm down mate-"  
"Don't you think I'm trying to!? He nearly killed them! HE COULD HAVE KILLED THEM!"  
Then he froze, taking deep breaths, and the cold in the room receded, causing Bunny to blink.  
"You okay?"  
"No."  
"We'll find him-"  
"No need. He's in a series of caves, on one of the mountains in the Alps. And we can't wait, because Iceman has already left to go and confront him. Plus, not only did he just try and hurt the kids at the orphanage, but he nearly killed my family. No-one. Touches. My. Family."  
Bunny just had time to reflect that he was lucky not to be on Jack's bad side right now, when a portal suddenly burst open next to them, and the three guardians stepped back through.

"Jamie's fine. His father arrived earlier this evening, and his mother and Sophie will be out of the hospital in a few days."  
"How bad."  
Statement, not a question, and North sighed, his fists clenching the only sign of his own anger.  
"A few cuts and bruises, Sophie has a broken arm, and his mother has a severe concussion with some internal bleeding that they managed to fix up. It could have been a lot worse-"  
"He's baiting me. Trying to make a point."  
"Most likely, Da."  
"Then he won't be expecting me to walk right into, what I'm sure _he_ thinks is, a perfect trap."  
North was about to complain, when Jack filled him in on Iceman and Shady.  
North nodded.

Problem was, he couldn't use the portals, because he didn't know the exact location of the caves on the ground. But he could find them from the air.  
For once, Bunny didn't complain about taking the sleigh, and they all quickly set off, none of them noticing Baby Tooth smuggling herself away in one of North's pockets, after they had all adamantly said that it was too cold and dangerous for her.  
After a while, Jack managed to catch a much faster stream of wind, and wouldn't take no for an answer as he flew on ahead. He'd only arrive about ten minutes before the guardians, but ten minutes could make all the difference…  
As they were going to find out…

* * *

**Me: *Cries* PITCHFORKS! GET YOUR PITCHFORKS HERE! BUY TWO, GET A FREE MAP OF WHERE TO FIND ICE BLACK! *Twirls my own red pitchfork demonically*  
Anyone feel like mobbing his place? I'm free on Tuesday? (I know, not my best chapter... But the next ones will be better as I won't be completely winging it...)  
Vader: Hello Readers. Yes, I am once again, and **_**without**_** the authors permission this time, might I add, speaking to you all directly. I just wish to inform you all that Raven is looking slightly nervous, and hoping everyone will be too focused on getting to Ice Black to remember that she is the one who actually wrote him and his actions-  
Me: Vader! I'm going to get you for this!  
Vader: With a Pitchfork?  
Me: *jabs him*  
Vader: Ow!  
Me: Yeah. With a Pitchfork… And I thought you were being nice!  
Vader: *glares* If you would let me finish? I was going to say, that I'm afraid, due to some weird sense of loyalty that I can't really explain, I'm kinda feeling like I should be acting as Raven's personal bodyguard. Seeing as I may as well do something useful in these footnotes, other than be the filer…ey character.  
Me: Oh… Erm… I have a question?  
Vader: Yes?  
Me: How the hell have you managed to hijack the authors notes? And ya know, do stuff without me saying so?  
Vader: Well, I think it might be partly down to the force, and partly down to the fact that you don't seem to mind.  
Me: *scoffs, but taps foot awkwardly, knowing that it seems to get even more chaotic when Vader is in charge, and I kinda like things that way* Err, right… Whatever. Anyway, *turning back to readers*  
Please review and let me know what you think! I know, it was quite fast paced, but hope you all enjoyed it anyway…? And no, this series is not reaching its end with this particular arc, I can assure you of that…  
*shoots Vader a suspicious look as I leave the room, still twirling the pitchfork…***

_**After I've Left…**_

**Pitch Black: *appears* Do those newer chapters, after that bumbling moron has been dealt with, include me?  
Vader: I don't know.  
Pitch: Well, can you ask? Please?  
**_**After ten minutes of constant blathering on Pitch's part…**_**  
Vader: *now at breaking point*Damn you to the Dark Side, YES! I'LL ASK HER!**


	40. Ice Black, Part 2, Avalanche

**Vader: Raven?  
Me (polishing my katana): Yes?  
Vader: Erm… I have a favour to ask?  
Me: Go on…?  
Vader: Put Pitch in the fic? He's so annoying all the time, keeping on and on and on and on and-  
Me: *blinks* Annoying? Then go use the force on him!  
Vader: Really?  
Me: Sure. I give you full permission to use the force on him… On one condition…  
Vader: What's that?  
Me: … You film it and send the film to everyone who has ever known or heard of him.  
Vader: *cracks knuckles with glee* Thy will be done… *vanishes*  
Me: Ah, I love the scent of evil in the mornings… Anyway, before I follow him to watch, thanks to Avenger13579, ninjakitty12 and caboosd for the faves and/or follows, Thanks to the guest reviewers and … well, reviewers as a whole! Hope you enjoy the chapter!  
*vanishes after Vader, keen on seeing this…*  
_**

* * *

Ice Black grinned as he caught sight of two figures climbing the mountainside. Might be time to send his Ice Shades on a small practice run? Who knows, maybe he would get lucky and Jack would turn up…  
With a flick of his wrist, he sent dozens of Ice Shades, made from reinforced Ice and slightly larger than yeti's, down the side of the mountain towards the two figures…  
_

Jack was slightly out of breath when he landed next to Iceman and Shady, who were arguing on the side of the mountain, only about a ten minute climb from the caves.  
Shady looked relieved when Jack arrived, and gestured to Iceman.  
"He won't listen…"  
Jack sighed.  
"Look, Iceman? I appreciate this, I really do… And the others will as well, especially Jamie, but right now, I'm pissed off, am fully intent on kicking that guys ass from here to the other side of the planet, and, Moon help me, I'm not feeling in the slightest bit guilty about that. You really want to be in the middle of that?"  
Iceman stared at him.  
"Yep."  
Jack blinked, then after a couple of seconds he sighed.  
"Stay near the guardians and stay out of my way. And, for Moon's sake, be careful. Clover will hunt me down and bury me in a clover mass of horror if you get hurt…"  
"I'm not useless you know-"  
"I know, but it doesn't mean I'm not allowed to worry… And if you repeat that to anyone, I will ram this staff so far up-"  
"Ahem!"  
They both turned to Shady, who pointed up the slope a little, and what they saw had Jack blinking.  
Ice creatures… Based on the Yeti's at a guess. He'd had a nightmare trying to perfect Ice Shades the first time he'd tried and still had a little trouble with them sometimes, and yet Ice Black had dozens of them…  
Jack sighed as he raised his staff, then instinctively let off a blast of blue that shattered three of them as they charged. He blinked… Ah, that could work…  
_

The guardians landed amidst a scene of chaos.  
Blasts of blue and white shot at various, Ice Shades apparently, that were attacking three familiar figures, and explosions of Ice were filling the air as they were destroyed.  
Shattered ice, clearly from dozens and dozens of Ice Shades already destroyed, was littered around in heaps, which were steadily being added to as Iceman and Shady worked together to blast at them.  
Jack, on the other hand, was in a field of debris all of his own, as blast after blast shattered Ice Shade after Ice Shade, his eyes as blue as the streams of light blasting from his staff. When he caught sight of them, he shot them a quick nod, shouting over,  
"Help the others!"  
They quickly did so, Jack clearly being able to handle himself, and joined Iceman and Shady, none of them voicing their worry that Ice Black was more powerful than they had expected if he could manage to control so many shades at once…  
Needless to say, they were relieved to find that their weapons worked on the creatures.  
Bunny's boomerang was as fluid as Sandy's dream whips, and North and Tooth were back to back as they worked to destroy the shades. Iceman was busy using Ice against Ice, and the sharp icicles he kept forming and throwing seemed to work if they directly hit near the center of the creatures, whereas Shady was using the dagger Jack had given him a while ago to surprisingly good effect.  
Slowly but surely, they managed to think down the numbers of the Shades, until it got to a point where they could actually see the others, and, more specifically, Jack, who was facing another, far less welcome yet easily recognizable spirit.  
Problem was, with the shades hat remained, there was no way they could reach him to help…

Safe in the knowledge that the guardians would help Iceman and Shady with the remaining shades, Jack started to fight his way through them, up towards the caves.  
He needn't have bothered. A few seconds later, Ice Black decided to make an appearance, and smirked at Jack, who dismissively blasted away another shade as he glared at the Ice Spirit.  
"You attacked my family."  
Ice Black raised an eyebrow this time.  
"Did I just hear that coming from Jack Frost? The dangerous loner who-"  
"Shut up. You know nothing about me-"  
"I know you're powerful. What else is there to know?"  
"That it's a bad idea to piss me off."  
Ice Black looked about to reply, when he seemed to catch sight of something behind Jack and smirked, which made Jack have to fight the urge to turn around.  
"What do you have to be smug about? We're more than capable of dealing with the shades…"  
"Maybe… but are you capable of dealing with an avalanche?"  
"You've seen me do it before-"  
"Really? What I we throw in some… extraneous variables?"  
He suddenly shot a blast of ice behind Jack, and he heard a small, instantly recognisable, squeal.  
Spinning, he immediately started to fly towards Baby Tooth, who had just landed in the snow fifty feet away, surrounded by shattered Ice from the impact in the air.  
But before he could move more than a couple of feet, a wall of ice hit him full on from behind, and he felt himself flying over the edge of the small outcrop of rock that they were stood on. He cursed, mainly at himself for not dodging it, no matter what the distraction, and pushed himself to his feet, only to realise that his staff had been wrenched from his grip by the impact.  
It now lay halfway between him and Ice Black, but before he could move, the Ice spirit grinned and held up a hand.  
"Now now, I'd think better on this. Sure, you could go for the staff, but that would mean leaving your little friend unprotected…"  
"From what?" Jack spat, and Ice Black smirked, stepping aside to reveal a trail of ice.  
Jack realised what it was just before a resounding crack echoed and a wall of snow and Ice began to fall.  
And Baby-Tooth was right in the path of it.  
"BABY TOOTH!"

The other guardians heard, but none of them were close enough to reach her. Even if he got his staff, he wouldn't be able to stop it in time, and if he ran to Baby Tooth, Ice Black would get the staff… But these thoughts were tumbling through his head even _as_ he had instinctively started running to the tiny fairy, without the slightest hesitation.  
What other choice was there?  
He reached the tiny, unconscious fairy and scooped her up, but by then it was far too late to make it to cover.  
He had pulled his hoody off whilst he was running, and had wrapped the small fairy inside it within a second of reaching her, thanking Moon for his instincts, and he pulled the small bundle into his chest, curling over her protectively as the cascade of ice, snow and rocks smothered them, crushing them from everywhere and pulling them down in all directions and even as Jack's instincts fought to kick in…  
_

The guardians, Shady and Iceman watched, helpless, as the events unfurled, from Ice Black's triumphant expression as he grabbed the staff and disappeared, to Jack managing to reach Baby Tooth just before the avalanche stole the pair.  
Unable to do more than shield themselves from it at the sides of the gully, hours seemed to pass, even though it could only have been minutes, before Iceman said the worst of it was over. It was still a couple of minutes before he said it was safe enough for them to walk on, and they blinked, all fighting back the sense of hopelessness at the huge expanse of white that lay down the entire side of the mountain face.  
How could the two have survived something like that…?  
And even if they _had,_ how could they possibly find them…?

* * *

**Me: Okay, not the longest chapter, and probably not the best… But evil cliffie right? Cliffie… Cliff? Ya see what I did there?  
Vader: *smacks me across the back of the head* That was tactless.  
Me: … Okay, fair enough. That was pretty evil and mean and harsh of me… But I will make this a long AN, so there was no reason to hit me…  
Vader: Oh really? Plus, in the past, if I had hit you, I'd be cleaning up the training room for a year, after the Hulk, so you must know I'm right.  
Me: … Oh, stop being right, and go and beat up Pitch Black… *under my breath* **_**Oh, why did I have to develop a mutual respect for an ex Sith Lord who nearly controlled the entire universe? Why couldn't it have been a rabbit…? Then again, rabbit's might not have such awesome ideas about how to create Chaos… Maybe that's why we get along so well!**_**  
Vader: *uses the force to lift Pitch and spin him ridiculously fast in the air* What was that?  
Me: Nothing… Ooh, nice job. Is he going to feel sick when you let him down?  
Vader: Let's see… *sops the spinning and dumps Pitch on the ground*  
Pitch: *runs to bathroom and sound of retching is heard*  
Me: …Nice. I am not clearing that up!  
Vader: It's fine. I'll just threaten to do it again unless he does exactly what I say, when I say it, including cleaning up...  
Me: Evil… I approve. Anyway, I kinda feel mean for leaving you guys hanging like that, so I will try and update as soon as I can-  
Tony: Oi! As your conscience, I cannot-  
Me: Oh, for Moons sake… *gets out phone and dials a number* Hey, I'm calling to talk to Miss Potts? ... Pepper? This is Raven… Uhuh… Actually, yes, it does involve Tony… What's he doing? He's masquerading as my conscience- *under breath to Vader* As if I need or want a conscience…  
Vader: *snorts, rolling eyes*  
Me: *into phone* Oh, so you'll come and pick him up? Thanks Pepper!**

_**A few minutes later…**_

**Vader: *spinning Tony around like he did to Pitch* This is fun… does he have to go?  
Me: Yes, I-  
Pepper (having just arrived) Yes, he does. TONY STARK!  
Tony (now trying not to throw up): H-hey… sweetie…  
Pepper: I'LL HAVE YOU SWEETIE'ING ME! NOW GET YOUR METAL BACKSIDE OVER HERE AND GO HOME!  
Tony: … Im not going to argue with that. I'll see you guys whenever… *literally runs through doorway, to avoid Pepper, whilst trying to actually stay upright and go in a straight line*  
Pepper: *about to follow*  
Me: Oh, Pepper? Keep him away from the pop tarts… He keeps trying to get Yoda and Sandy to make them come to life so he can pin rainbow tails on them and have a real life Nyan cat.  
Pepper: … *sighs* Here we go again… Thanks Raven *follows Tony*  
Me: No Problem… Now, Vader? Where is Pitch?  
Vader: *blinks* err… He's… erm…  
Me: *taps foot, raising an eyebrow expectantly*  
Vader: He's… Plaiting and weaving daisies into Yoda's ear hair.  
Me: *blinks, mouth open* And… Why?  
Vader: Because I said so and I'm bored.  
Me: … I need to have a nap…  
Vader: Sleep tight!  
Me: *blinks at him, decides it isn't worth it, and turns to leave* See ya soon guys! Oh, and please don't kill me for the cliffie? You'll never find out what happen if you do!  
Vader: Plus, I'd have loads of paperwork to fill in and –OW!  
Me: *runs out before he can get me back for hitting him across the head with the hilt of my light saber* TILL NEXT TIME!**

**(See? Long footnote to make up for the short chapter… Next chapter will be longer! Promise!)**


	41. Ice Black Part 3, Using your Centre

**Okay guys, I am so so so so sorry for the delay in updates, but there has been a lot going on (ill, doctors, exams, revision etc) and I just have not had the time… There may be a slight delay between the next few chapters, but then it's back to daily updates… Anyway, Hope you enjoy, and long fore-notes and foot-notes in this chapter to make up for the wait!**

**Thanks to oO Sara NekoChan Oo, hanayou343, She-who-lols-at-dork-lords, Cherrycoffycake, Percabeth is Awsome, LittleGreyGremlin, Death By Violet, GreenPedalflower and Jack Frost the Frost Child for the faves and/or follows!  
*blinks and looks over to where Tony is speaking up, after he just arrived*  
_**

**Tony (to Yoda): Forget the Osbournes', **_**you're**_** more deserving of the title Green Goblin!  
Yoda (To Tony): Well hunk of Junk you are!  
Tony: Ha, coming from an old, wrinkled, washed up prune of a… well, God knows what you are!  
Yoda: Better to be old and wise than younger and a moron think I!  
Tony: Ha, you're calling me a moron? I may be a lot of things, but stupid is not one of them.  
Yoda: No, but a waste of time and space and effort you are!  
Tony: Gremlin!  
Yoda: Hooligan!  
Tony: Old Coot!  
Yoda: Tin Man! And what is with that ridiculous beard, hmm?  
Vader (having been watching and chuckling): Ooh, smackdown…  
Me: Don't encourage them! *pulls Tony away, trying not to laugh at the disgruntled look on his face* What do you think you're doing here?  
Tony: *Shuffling* I… err… I**_** accidentally**_**… told the Avengers that you and Vader were their enemies and I'm kinda the scout for their attack…  
Me: *blinks, then face palms*  
Vader: *snapping into war commander mode* Okay, set the defences!  
Me: *sigh* Oh Stark, you're all gonna get smack down so hard… *blinks* Hang on, is Hulk coming too?  
Tony: Maybe… Why?  
Me: Because we're good friends… Kinda… Maybe… Ish…  
Vader: *matter of factly* He still holds a grudge from when you beat him at arm wrestling. Now, where do we want the droids?  
Me: Ah, erm… *snaps into military mode and clears throat* Okay. Droids in formation for the second line of defence, Bunnies, Yeti's and Mini fairies are to line the sides, and double around to cut off an escape route, then arm the elves with lightsabers, and let them loose as soon as the enemy is within our grasp.  
Vader: *salutes* And what about us?  
Me: Well, we will be leading the charge with the elves. Battle, defeat, then explain how much of an idiot Tony is, and let the beat him up whilst we film it and send it to Pepper. Clear?  
Vader: *with a grin* Crystal.  
Me: You know, we're going to have to do something about the mask… It's only with my author powers that I can see your expressions…  
Vader: …err… Okay, but battle first?  
Me: *as the tell-tale crunch of Thor's hammer is heard* Of course… Meanwhile, enjoy the chapter guys, and I will most likely be speaking to you from the battle field the next time we meet! Now… FOR NARNIA! AND FOR ASLA-! Oh, wait… Wrong fandom… Err… Okay then. FOR TRUTH! FOR JUSTICE! AND FOR THE RIGHT TO SEE TONY STARK GETTING HIS ASS BEATEN BY A GUY WITH AN EYEPATCH!  
Elves with Lightsabers, Me and Vader, likewise armed with lightsabers and blasters (as Thor smashes his way into the room, followed by the rest of the avengers): *charge uttering war cries*  
Rest of my forces: *surround the Avengers*  
THE BATTLE BEGINS!  
Me: (Just before I leap into the ruckus) ENJOY THE CHAPTER!  
_**

* * *

Jack groaned as he opened his eyes, only to see nothing but blackness. His head was throbbing and he groaned again as he remembered what had happened. They were trapped in an avalanche? Great… Wait… _They_!  
"Baby Tooth?"  
He carefully manoeuvred himself, wincing slightly when the snow shifted. He may be okay under here, though without his staff he wasn't too sure, but Baby Tooth could get crushed… Slowly, he managed to uncurl enough to unwrap the hoody, and breathed a sigh of relief when he realised that the tiny fairy was still breathing. Unconscious, but she'd be fine… If he could get the out of here.  
The guardians would be looking, but it could be hours till they were found, and Baby Tooth wouldn't be able to stand the cold for that long, Hoody or no Hoody. Even the thermal fabric that her own tiny jumper was made from wouldn't keep her warm in this temperature.  
Then there was the fact that there was little air under the snow.  
If he had his staff…  
Well, he didn't. No good worrying about it at the moment.  
Slowly, he started to manoeuvre himself around, halting whenever he felt the snow shift, but managed to eventually move himself into a crouch.  
Some instinct told him he was several metres down, and he frowned as he tried to figure out how to get out.  
He couldn't just climb through. For one thing, he needed to hold Baby Tooth and he'd need both hands to push himself through. For another, he'd have to be fast and agile if he wanted to avoid causing another snow slide.  
He blinked as he heard a faint chattering, and grinned in relief as Baby Tooth fluttered dozily to his hair. Her breath was misting out in front of her, and Jack felt an irrational sense of guilt as she shivered.  
If only he could get closer to the surface…  
Then he blinked.  
Maybe…

"BT?"  
She chirped, and Jack sighed. This could be tricky…  
"Okay, now I need you to listen carefully, okay?"  
She nodded.  
"Right. The sow isn't very stable, but we're quite a way down, so I need to get you out before it gets too cold, okay?"  
Another nod.  
"Okay. I'm going to clamber up towards the surface at an angle, so that the snow will be more supportive. As soon as I get nearer the surface, I'm going to have to speed up, so you'll have to be quick and fly out as soon as you see an opening, okay?"  
A concerned chirp.  
"I'll be fine. I'm actually thinking of this as a holiday-"  
Baby Tooth suddenly blinked and squealed, causing Jack to start, before he grabbed her to stop her from propelling herself into the snow.  
"Yeah, I know. But we'll get it back from him. Let's just get out of here first, okay?"  
She nodded, and Jack shuffled about, letting her grip his hair, before he started to work his way through the snow.  
The job was easier than it should have been, and Jack got to wondering whether he still had some connection to the snow even without the staff, and it took him several minutes to clamber to within a metre or so of the top. Problem was the snow was unstable, and something told him they were near a precipice. Again, he wasn't sure what was telling him that, but he wasn't going to ignore it.  
Nor was he going to ignore the danger or the chance that was presented when the snow suddenly shifted beneath him.  
Grabbing Baby Tooth, he leapt as the snow came loose, and shoved her up through into the air, where she instinctively spread her wings.  
She panicked as the snow began moving even more, even as Jack tried to clamber out, and zipped backwards and forwards as he began to get dragged along with it.  
A shout from behind her revealed the guardians, running towards them, but as the snow started shifting, they barely managed to clamber to the rocks.  
Then she felt what the others must have felt with the first avalanche, as another wave covered Jack, and he went hurting over the edge of a cliff.

Jack cursed as he saw the wave of snow tumbling towards him, and, thinking of the cliff not too far from him, dove back into the snow.  
That way, he wouldn't be swept too far from the edge. Why that should matter, his brain was too slow to figure out, and his hands were moving even as he was swept over the edge.  
He figured it out just as his hand managed to grab onto some rock, and he pulled his other hand to grab hold too.  
Ah, so the deeper he was, the closer he would be to the cliff when he was swept over.  
He liked having good instincts sometimes…  
Who needs a staff when you're a ninja, huh?  
Those thoughts kept him going until the snow finally stopped falling over the edge, and he took a couple of breaths before he started climbing…  
_

Baby Tooth snugged in closer to Tooth as they all stared at the cliff face.  
Bunny took a few steps back, then leapt over the huge layer of snow, sliding slightly as he landed on the other side, before leaning over as far as he could.  
Iceman was already making an ice pathway across the unstable surface, and they were quick to join him.  
The cliff went down for a couple of hundred metres, and the huge blocks of rock and ice littered the mountain face below them. It didn't take long for them to realise just how bad this was likely to be… If Jack was buried beneath the-  
Bunny blinked as he heard a small trickle of rocks, and something told him to check it out.  
"Iceman, can you make a path over there?"  
The ice spirit nodded, and did so, following the Pooka as he head over.  
Another small shower of small rocks and snow showered from the edge of the cliff, and Bunny blinked, a grin forming as a pale hand appeared over the edge, grabbing a small rock outcrop.  
Quickly, an out of breath Jack pulled himself over the edge, grinning at Bunny and speaking as he did so.  
"Did I… ever tell you… I sometimes hate avalanches? Seriously, hate 'em…" He grabbed the furry paw that was held out for him, and felt himself pulled up over the edge and into a hug.  
Blinking, he returned it, then stretched his muscles slightly to loosen them as he pulled back, rolling his eyes as Sandy pulled him into another hug, and speaking over the older guardians shoulder.  
"What's the occasion?"  
"Ya had us all worried sick, ya know that?"  
"That's the occasion?"  
"… Shut yer yap Frostbite."  
"Why do I- WOAH!" This was as he was barrelled into by a hail of feathers, more commonly known as Toothiana, which caused him to slip and nearly stumble back into the snow. In hindsight, he would realise that when Sandy speedily let go and backed away, there would have been a reason for it…  
He rolled his eyes as he managed to escape the vice like grip, and gave an indignant huff as Tooth spoke up.  
"You're okay!"  
"Of course I'm okay. It's only an avalanche… Honestly…" He shot her an innocent smile, then he grinned at Bunny.  
"See? I told you I didn't need the staff for everything…" Then he frowned. "Though it sure as Moon comes in handy-"  
He was pulled into a hug by Iceman and Shady before he could continue, and before he could escape, North pulled them all into his own huge embrace, squeezing in Sandy just as the golden guardian was in the wrong place at the wrong time.  
"You had us all worried, Jack."  
"Nothing new there then…" Bunny quipped, and Jack shot him a glare, which morphed to a grin as he turned back to Iceman.  
"Speaking of worry, and subsequent trouble, Clover is going to have your-"  
"Oh Moon, don't remind me…" Iceman said, with a shudder.  
Tooth huffed at that, and muttered just loud enough for them to hear.  
"Typical… He gets himself buried by an avalanche and swept over a cliff and he still jokes around…"  
Jack rolled his eyes, sighing.  
"Guardian of fun remember? Kinda in the job description…"  
_

Back at the Pole an hour later, and Jack was in his customary place on the beams.  
Except this time, he had got himself up there with a combination of a leap, Bunny's head and a front flip.  
"What? It's comfy up here!" He said, in response to North and Tooth's blinks. Sandy and Bunny, on the other hand, were simply grinning, the Pooka, though rubbing his head, not seeming to mind all that much.  
Jack rolled his eyes as he saw Tooth tracking his route, and sighed.  
"I'm not completely useless without my staff, you know… Though I wouldn't mind getting it back before Ice Black manages to use it..."  
That sobered them all up, though Jack couldn't help but sense that it was the thing on the forefront of their minds, but he had a feeling it was more for_ his_ sake than any worry they might have about Ice Black.

It wasn't long before a very mad looking Clover arrived, flanked by Gale, Flow and Lily.  
"ASPEN AQUILO! I SWEAR, THE NEXT TIME YOU-"  
"_Aspen Aquilo_? That's your name?" Jack was grinning, all thoughts of Ice Black temporarily swept from his mind by the startling revelation.  
In _200 years,_ Iceman had never let any of them know his name…  
Iceman, or rather, Aspen as Jack fully intended to call him from now on, glared at him.  
"Not a single word from you Frost…"  
"But… But… Roman Mythology? Really?"  
"… My parents enjoyed it. Happy now?" This was to Clover, who seemed to have calmed down.  
"Marginally. Jack? Do me a favour and call him Aspen? It'll annoy him."  
"No need to tell me that. Hey, can I call you Azzy?"  
Jack ended up laughing as Iceman made a leap for him, and he ducked out of the way, causing the ice spirit to tumble into the desk.  
"So Aspen, how's life?"

It took nearly ten minutes to stop the resulting sparring match, and eventually, Clover dragged Aspen away, catching an orb North threw to her.  
"Call us if you need anything guys, we're going to warn everyone about what's happened…"  
As soon as they left, all aside from Shady that is, Tooth made a comment about how she wasn't sure Jack should put himself in dang-  
That was as far as she got before a very indignant huff came from Jack and Shady alike, and even Bunny and Sandy rolled their eyes at her.  
Thus began one of the great debates of the decade…

Point one, Jack was going to fight staff or no staff. It was Bunny, Sandy and Jack vs North and Tooth, and it was inevitable that the trio would win.  
Indeed, it took _only half an hour_ for them to convince the other two.

Point two, yes, Jack was perfectly capable of taking care of himself, even without flying. Though to out Tooth's worries to rest, Jack and Sandy decided to experiment with dream sand, and they ended up playing a game where Jack had to hop from dream sand platform to dream sand platform, Sandy making them as they went, and Jack leaping around the room, showing off slightly with front and back flips to prove his point.  
Landing with a flourish, he grinned at Tooth.  
"See? Who needs to fly…"

Point three, Ice Black could be anywhere. How to find him? North was all for patrolling, but Bunny countered, saying that there time would be better spent in one place, so they could all head wherever as soon as they heard something.  
But how would they find where he was?  
Jack had rolled his eyes at that.  
"Just go to Jamie's and turn the TV on. No doubt there will be a news broadcast if anything strange happens with the ice…"  
That had gotten him a couple of odd stares, before they had immediately agreed.  
Throughout this entire exchange, Shady had been grinning like a loon, and quickly demanded to tag along.  
No-one was going to argue with the very determined looking little shadow spirit, and he quickly joined them as they head out to the sleigh.

It was just as they were heading out to the sleigh when Bunny stopped quickly, blinking, and gave Jack a piercing look.  
"Mate, didn't you keep the warren charm, that lets you in there, on your staff?"  
Jack rolled his eyes.  
"Damn, with that look, you had me worried."  
He pulled up his sleeve, to reveal both the egg shaped charm and the dream sand charm on a thin leather bracelet, before shooting Bunny a grin.  
"Decided it was probably safer… Just in case."  
"… Mate, it's official. I'm giving up being surprised by you..."  
Jack rubbed his hands together, grinning gleefully as he strolled out after the others.  
"Challenge accepted…"  
_

First stop was at Jack's home, where he ran through to the weapons rooms, grabbing his sai.  
He blinked when he realised that he still had a connection to the frost marked weapons, even though the staff was now in someone else's hands, and slotted them into his waist.  
They'd easily destroy any of the mindless ice drones Ice Black could send after them. He also pulled on his boots and a pair of fingerless gloves.  
Just in-case he would have any more climbing to do before the day was out.  
He also changed into a white Hoody. Well, blue _kind of_ stood out against the snow…  
Then he blinked as he felt a strange sensation in his chest…  
A sudden spasm of pain, lasting only a couple of seconds, had him gasping, and something told him that someone was trying to use the staff…  
Jack groaned as he pulled himself up, and considered that.  
So… Someone was trying to use his staff, no doubt about who, and it was… fighting it? The staff was fighting against being used by someone else, and was, apparently, still linked to him in some way.  
Though, to be fair, he honestly had no idea why or how…  
"Hey, MiM? Feel like explaining?"  
A faint whisper inside his head, and Jack focused on the voice.  
_"The staff is yours Jack Frost… Only yours… It is a part of you… But I gave it to you to help you channel the power inside you. You are stronger than you think Jack…"  
_And on that cryptic note, the voice faded away, causing Jack to role his eyes.  
"Okay, a couple of cryptic comments and a few insinuated points. Cheers MiM."

As he head back to the others, he thought that through.  
Only his? Did that mean that Ice Black couldn't use it? Or that he couldn't use it properly?  
And what did he mean by channelling his power? Did that mean he didn't need the staff? But then why had he never been able to use his powers without it before?  
In response tot eh raised eyebrows the rest of them gave him, he simply shrugged, sighing.  
"Has MiM ever given you a straight answer?"  
Bunny snorted.  
"Not likely Frostbite."  
North chuckled.  
"Da. Maybe the cryptic speaking is his way of avoiding boredom, Da?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Ah, so this is what it feels like to know someone with an irritating hobby…"  
"Like Pranking?"  
"And making snowstorms?"  
"And annoying everyone he can?"  
Even Sandy joined in, signing.  
_And being far too active for us older generations?  
_Jack laughed at that.  
"Your words, not mine…"  
He was cut off as he felt another spasm in his chest, and gasped.  
"He's trying to use the staff again…"  
"What do you mean, trying? And how do you know?" North said, sounding confused, and Jack gestured to the sleigh.  
"I'll explain on the way…"

Another quick detour had Jack being squeezed half to death by a worried Jamie, and then being surrounded by happy, squealing children that were playing in the hospital yard.  
Tooth, the others having been leapt on by children, was the only one within earshot as Jack had to tell the kids that he was afraid he couldn't make any snow at the moment.  
And she was the only one close enough to see the momentary lapse, in the mask of happiness he had kept on his face, which showed a glimpse of how he was really feeling, as a young girl who was clearly very ill gave him a hug, saying she could wait till another day.  
Tooth could tell it was hurting Jack, him being unable to do the slightest thing with the snow to make the children happy, and there was no way any of them would be letting Ice Black keep that staff.  
She smiled as Sophie broke into a quick, limping run, before Jack scooped her up.

Jack struggled to keep the smile in place, as Sophie said the same as the others, that it was okay and he could come back another time.  
He shouldn't have had to come back another time. He had always been able to make others have fun…  
The anger started to creep back in, along with the irrational guilt he was feeling, and he mentally cursed Ice Black, spinning Sophie around before putting her down.  
Only to hear an Ow, as she took a couple of steps before falling down as her ankle started hurting.  
Clearly something more caused by the accident, Jack clenched his fist as he helped her to her feet, picking her back up again, wanting nothing more than to cheer up with some wintery fun...  
Determined, though not sure why, he head over to the nearest window, and placed his palm against it, startled when it actually frosted over. Slowly, but still… He had not expected it to actually work.  
More to push it than anything, he reached out a hand and tried to make an image of a small rabbit.  
After a couple of minutes, he was just about to give up, when he noticed a slight movement.  
Sophie had clearly seen it too, and squealed.  
"Come on Uncle Jackie! You can do it!"  
That was all it took for the ice rabbit to leap from the frosted glass and start leaping about the yard.  
Jack smiled a genuine smile as Sophie gave him a hug, and blinked as she gave a small gasp, looking over his shoulder.  
"Jack! Look!"  
Jack turned, blinking as he spotted a small layer of snow starting to form from a light snowfall which certainly had not been there before.  
On a whim, he flicked his wrist, grinning when he watched the snowflakes follow the gesture, and realised he had subconsciously been doing what he always did with the staff, which was pretty much feeling the season of winter.  
He was a part of it after all…  
With that in mind, he put Sophie down, grinning as she started trying to catch the rabbit, and took a deep breath, before waving his hand, causing a few snowball piles to appear.  
It was nothing like he could normally have done, but it was enough for the kids to have some fun…  
Fun! Well, he was the guardian of fun after all… And a winter spirit…  
A whispering voice in his head made him blink, and shake his head, bemused.  
_Now you are beginning to understand…  
_Jack sighed.  
More cryptic messages… Ah well, that could wait. Now... How many of his powers could he still use?  
And, _most importantly_… Could he still make the snowballs fly…?  
_

To be fair, Jack_ did_ have reason to laugh at the guardians attempts to use the TV. It was satellite after all… So there was no reason for them to glare at him… Or for Shady to give them the bright idea of putting Jack in charge of the remote…  
So it_ really_ was not his fault when they ended up watching the ending of an episode of Looney Tunes… In which Bunnymund was mercilessly teased about how funny it would be for him to meet Bugs Bunny.  
Though they all knew the happy façade was just that, and they were all getting increasingly worried as Ice Blacks attempts to use the staff became more frequent and violent.  
Always one to look on the bright side of things, Jack chose to think of it as a good thing that he felt whenever it happened. It let him know that they still had a chance to find him.  
Though if he found out he couldn't use it, there was every chance that he would destroy it…  
And, considering that, so far, he had only been able to do the smallest things, with some difficulty in a lot of cases, and with the largest thing having been the snow fall, even though he still had no idea how he had done it, there was no way he could match Ice Black in terms of fighting with the aid of the wind or snow… Though it turned out that the wind was still able to help him with things such as throwing snowballs, even if it could not carry him…  
And trying to figure out why he could do only some things, and not others, was giving him a headache, so he had decided to let it drop…  
Looks like it would have to be a team effort, and he would need more luck and improvisation than ever before… Good thing he had a few tricks up his sleeves then.

So when, after another short while, there was a news report of a serious avalanche where there really shouldn't have been, Jack sighed.  
"Hundreds of years old and he still has temper tantrums…" he said, with a small grin, as they all head off to the sleigh, "And you call _me_ immature…"  
_You are.  
_"… Shut up Sandy."  
_I'm not speaking…  
_Tooth sighed as Jack replied, and Sandy immediately sent back his own retort. Here they went again, on another joy filled sleigh ride and a silent argument…_  
Hey! Who are you calling an old man, Frost? Someday, you'll be old too!  
_Jack snorted.  
"Yeah, and everyone will call me… _Old Man Frost, _or _Old Man Winter_… Honestly, that's ridiculous!"  
A faint chuckle sounded inside all of their heads, and they wondered that MiM found so amusing about that statement.  
Ah well, they had more pressing things to worry about at the moment…  
_Hey! Stop insulting me in Australian!_

* * *

(There is some important stuff in the second half of the footnote, so please read?)

**(The battle is over, and the Avengers surrendered-after they saw me put hulk in a headlock and bury Thor beneath his own hammer using Captain America's shield as a frisbee- and let me tell them what was actually going on… Then we realised there were two people missing and a very amusing sight met us…)**

**Yoda: *beating up Tony with his walking stick* NOW WHO IS OLD, TIN-MAN? HMM? HMM?**  
**Me: *laughing at the sight***  
**Vader: *trying not to laugh and keep up his dark persona, though kind of failing a little***  
**Avengers: *Thor filming it, chuckling and finding it hard to keep the camera steady, and the others, now knowing what Tony had been up to recently, laughing***  
**Me: (after I have calmed down): Right, well then, now that we have all sorted out this misunderstanding, I trust there will be no further… Hostilities between us?**  
**Fury: *quickly* Of course. Our apologies for the mistake.**  
**Me: *smirking at the fact that I have one of the most respected men in the world squirming* Not at all… Anyway Hulk, How have you been?**  
**Hulk: Hulk smash puny creatures. Now Hulk good.**  
**Me: Good, good.**  
**Hulk: Now Hulk want rematch. Arm wrestle!**  
**Me: But… But I… *realises that arguing is futile* Oh fine…**

**Ten minutes later…**

**Me (having won again): I told you last time it was a bad idea…  
Hulk: Hulk defeat you one day!  
Me: Maybe… *looks over and realises I'm going to have my hands full sorting things out, so turns to Vader* Hey, Vader? Im gonna get this sorted out. Could you give the readers the messages?  
Vader: Sure, no Problem…  
Me: *walks off*  
Vader: Hello again, Readers. Several things on the agenda today.  
****Number One,**** It has been brought to Raven's attention that you all enjoy the April Fool chapters, and, seeing as she is not going to put him back in this fic, how would you all feel about a branch off fic, focused on Jack vs April Fool throughout the years in the future? Set at intervals throughout the next couple of centuries? Please leave any thoughts in a review…  
****Number two****… Thank you to one Guest reviewer, who is a fellow Mer-whovian, and to another Guest reviewer, M, Raven hopes this chapter makes up for the long, boring school days…  
****And number three****, Iceman's real name is based off of the place, Aspen, and an old name in roman mythology for the North Wind, Aquilo… What did you all think of it?  
Oh, and a message just from me? Trust me, Raven does know where she is going with this arc, don't worry… Yes, I know the last bit of that chapter was less serious than it could have been, but if you think about it they have faced so many ridiculous threats that they must be used to it enough to joke about it now. And she really is feeling guilty about the delay. She has been ill and there have been exams and all… Anyway, till next time then!  
Me: *calling over as I realised Vader's finished* Yeah! See you guys! Hopefully, I'll be able to update soon!  
**


	42. Ice Black, Part 4 Who Needs A Staff?

**Me: Oh, Thank Moon… Finally, no avengers, rooms are tidy, elves are secured and Yoda is back in his straight-jacket…  
Vader: And I'm not to mention that that ass- *quick look to me, remembering the younger readers* **_**annoyance,**_** Tony Stark, is finally back where he belongs…  
Me: He's getting his backside handed to him by Pepper?  
Vader: Exactly…  
Me: … You should show your evil-ish side more often. It's amusing. Though without the whole Sith Lord thing, ya know?  
Vader: How exactly?  
Me: I dunno… Go annoy Han and Chewie and I'll think of something.  
Vader: But I don't want to get shot at again… It's irritating to have to dodge and stop the blasts…  
Me: Fine. You can go, or you can stay with me being really tired and-  
Vader: See you later! *runs off*  
Me: *sighs contentedly with a conspiratorial wink* Works every time… Anyway, a couple of things. Thanks to SadAngel262, DARKLOVEFORFANFICTION123 and anna1031 for the faves and/or follows… Oh, and I will be responding to guest reviews after the random shizzle of the footnote :D  
And, one last thing, Trust me, the next chapters, when it gets back to the one-shots about random stuff, will be better... I PROMISE!  
Enjoy :D  
_**

* * *

Jack was pacing… Though, to be fair, he did have good reason for it. They had arrived at the mountainside, just in time to see Ice Black vanish. Now they had no idea where he was, and only knew that he would be out trying to cause more suffering…And apparently still trying to use the staff. Shady had just left, to see if anyone he knew had any information, but Jack wasn't hopeful.  
He blinked as he heard a high pitched squeak, and span to see Baby Tooth, who had, yet again, managed to track them down even after they had ordered her to stay at the Palace, shivering.  
Tooth sighed, summing up what Jack was thinking.  
"We should head back to the Pole."  
No-one disagreed.  
_

An hour later, and they were all back at the Pole. Sandy had had to blast some dream sand at Baby Tooth to get her to sleep, and she was now comfortably snuggled into Jack's hoody, which he had placed on the table.  
And the winter spirit was currently pacing along the beams, having finally convinced Tooth that he was not going to fall and 'break every bone in his body', in the middle of a bout of guilt and feeling useless.  
Not only had Ice Black attacked his family and people he cared about, Moon knows how many towns, caused so much chaos and destruction, and stolen his staff… But he was still at it, and Jack couldn't do a damned thing about it.  
He didn't like feeling helpless.  
In the last three hundred years, he had been sure to make it so that he was never reliant on another person again… Shame he didn't think about objects. Sure, he had other weapons that he had been able to channel his powers through, like the Sai, but they were nowhere near as effective as the staff…  
Which he could still feel some strange connection to.  
Typical. He could feel it, but he couldn't find it…  
He was jolted out of his thoughts by the arrival of a puffing Shady.  
"Moon, you guys are hard to find… This place is huge…"  
Jack had already swung himself down, and Shady nodded at the unasked question.  
"Clover and Iceman have been keeping an eye on Burgess… The roads are starting to ice over. Badly… There have already been a couple of near accidents..."  
Jack frowned.  
"Shady? You feeling energetic?"  
Catching on, the shadow spirit sighed, crossing his arms in a huff.  
"Is 'no' even an option?"  
"Nope."  
"Then move it…"  
"Jack…" There was a warning tone in North's voice, and Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"I'm only going to check in on the kids." _And if I run into Ice Black, then it's all the worse for him… _Jack finished in his head, though maybe they could all read minds, because they all gave him '_Yeah, right…_' Looks, to which he responded with feigned hurt.  
"Would I lie to you guys?"  
They all shared a look and, in unison,  
"Yeah mate."  
"Da."  
"Half a truth…"  
_Yes_…  
Jack pouted.  
"Ouch… That actually hurt…"  
"Sure Frostbite… Now are you going or not?  
"Bunny!" But Tooth's indignant retort was interrupted by a snappy salute from Jack, before he grabbed Shady's shoulder, and they both twisted and vanished.  
Tooth gave the Pooka an indignant look, to which he shrugged.  
"He can look after himself Tooth. No good smothering him… Anyway, I'll get there a few minutes after him, so where's the harm? I just need to pick up a few things first…"  
With that, he opened a tunnel and vanished through.  
The others all exchanged looks, before North ran from the room to grab an orb, Tooth and Sandy right behind him.

It wasn't long before the four of them had met up in the field outside the town, though they had no idea where Jack was. After a few minutes, they were ready to go and look, when the winter spirit arrived.  
"Ice Black's at the mountain."  
"How do you-"  
"He left a… A _message_… with the kids."  
Jack clenched a fist as he remembered how nervous and twitchy they had all been when he had found them several minutes ago, after Ice Black's… _visit. _But they seemed to be fine after Jack told him he was going after him, and he told them he would visit in a couple of days.  
At the subtle shake of Shady's head, they guardians decided not to ask, and instead, North threw an orb, opening a portal. He'd been there before, so it was no trouble to open it to the right location.  
But the sight that met them was definitely a little worse than they had been expecting…  
Dozens of Ice Shades surrounded them, and they all had to fight the urge to face palm.  
Seriously? An ambush?  
How cliché…  
Jack, on the other hand, for once, didn't seem the faintest bit interested in the whole cliché, or the fact that they were surrounded by mindless ice drones, and glared at Ice Black, who was stood on an outcrop of rock, glaring right back.  
"So, Frost. It appears that the staff doesn't seem to want to work."  
"And you're surprised by that?"  
"Well, considering it was said to be only an item of power… Yes. I did not know that it was solely attuned to you…"  
"All you would have had to do was ask."  
"You would have told me?"  
"Nope."  
"Didn't think so… Though I do have one question… What happens if the staff breaks after someone has stolen it?"  
Jack blinked, but before he could do anything, Shady had vanished, reappearing in the shadows behind Ice Black and leaping at him, shouting a variety of things, only some of which Jack could make out. Something about… messing with his friends…? And did Shady just call Ice Black a _Snowcone_?

The others were so startled by the unexpected move that it took a couple of seconds for them to realise that the ice shades were moving, but before they could do anything, Ice Black had shoved Shady off of him, throwing him over the edge of the rock, where he landed un-moving, and grimacing over the gash where the shadow spirit had slashed at his arm.  
"Right… Where was I? Oh yes… Staff breaking after it has been stolen… You don't know? Shame… I guess I'll have to find out another way…"  
Jack gasped at the searing pain shooting through him as the staff was shattered, and he found himself falling to the floor, barely able to do so much as breathe. This was worse than the first time… much worse…  
But before the guardians could get to him, the ice shades started moving forward, cutting them off, and the sounds of a battle started to echo through the air.  
Jack tried to pull himself to his feet, but was only able to get as far as his knees before he felt something smash into him, and he went crashing into a wall of rock.  
Feeling disorientated, he managed to blink away the blurred dizziness, only in time to see a huge ice foot smashing into him again, sending him several feet up the slopes, landing only a few metres from Shady, who was dizzily getting to his feet.  
Jack attempted to do the same, but ended up getting thrown yet again, but before the shade could do so a fourth time, Shady had pulled it into a shadow, before crushing it.  
Grinning faintly at Jack, he collapsed back against the wall.  
"Never done that… before… Takes too much… out of you… And what was this… about you not… needing help…?"  
"Okay… say I told you so…" Jack said, finally managing to push himself to his feet, only to get flattened beneath a blob of golden sand.  
"Sandy?!"  
The golden guardian tottered a little as he got up, before give Jack some very clear, non-verbal instructions, to stay put and raced back into the fight, where each of the guardians were clearly having a rather hard time of it.

Then Jack noticed that Shady was no longer awake, but, after a slight panic, Jack realised that he was only unconscious, and, using the wall to hold himself up, glared at where Ice Black was directing the ice shades.  
Damn it, that spirit had attacked people he cared about… It took a lot for Jack to actually come to consider someone as a friend, and Ice Black had attacked pretty much every one of them. Not to mention Jamie and Sophie… His family… And his other family were currently surrounded by mindless blocks of ice in the form of yeti's… And here he was, completely unable to help…  
Damn It, he was a winter spirit! Ice Black's affinity was with Ice, but he was the very embodiment of winter itself! He could control every damned aspect of the season, and an Ice Spirit was getting the better of him? Damnit, _He was Jack Frost_!  
Just as that thought entered his head, along with a sense of… well… everything, he heard a whisper in his mind.  
_Now you understand… You are fun… you are winter... In your case, to be one is to be the other…  
_Jack took a deep breath, blinking as he felt a familiar cool rush into him.  
Just as Ice Black decided to start another avalanche, and direct it right towards the guardians.  
Jack pulled himself upright, flexing his fingers.  
Big mistake…

It was shock and bemusement all around as the avalanche froze in its place, as if held up by some invisible force.  
But, turning, it didn't take long for them all to realise the cause of it.  
One very pissed off looking winter spirit, eyes glacier, wind whipping around him and snow swirling in small spires around his feet, had one hand directed towards the avalanche, holding it where it was, and the other juggling several balls of ice, which were flying towards the various ice shades, leaving very few for the guardians to have to deal with... Which they promptly did anyway, before turning back to wonder how the hell Jack was controlling everything.  
Heck, he made it look effortless, and perhaps it was… A fact that was not lost on Ice Black.  
After glancing between Jack and the shattered staff, he seemed to decide 'to hell with it' and sent a wave of shards of ice towards Jack.  
They never even got close.  
As Jack stopped the waves of sharp projectiles, at the same time as holding the avalanche in place and launching his own exploding orbs of ice, he was thinking.  
So, he didn't need the staff to use his powers, but it was handy to channel it… Seeing as he had enough swirling inside him to stop an avalanche, and he got the feeling that if he didn't have said avalanche to focus most of his power on, he would have ended up having to get rid of it…  
So, point one. He needed the staff for actually channeling amounts of power that were not ridiculous and dangerous.  
Point two, he did not need the staff all the time… Which he had to admit was a bonus.  
Point three, he was only discovering he could do this _now_? It would have come in _so_ handy several times in the past...  
And point four… That Ice Spirit was really annoying him… Like really, _really_ annoying him…  
Then Jack smirked. May as well use the avalanche for something… Normally, he would try to find some kind of peaceful way out of this… But, to be fair, he knew Ice Black would not accept that, plus the Ice Spirit had pissed him off far too much for him to care.  
Now then, how much energy did it take to actually _control _an avalanche?  
Quite a lot apparently… But he could do it.  
By the time Ice Black had figured out what the real danger was, he was too slow to stop it, and was swept out of sight by a cascade of snow and ice, as Jack changed the course of the avalanche to cover where the ice spirit had previously been standing.

The fact that he couldn't really use small amounts of energy, so any attempt to keep the snowfall level kind of got out of hand, meant he started to channel his power through the Sai, which proved far more effective than he had experienced before.  
He just knew he was going to be able to spend hours figuring out what else came with this...  
As the tumbling snow started to slow, Jack found himself finally getting tired… But there was a few things he had to do before he could sleep.  
Number one, check on Shady… But a thumbs up from North and Tooth told him that he was okay. And there was nothing Jack would be able to do, so he might as well get on with something else… For example, to-do item, number _two_… Where on earth was his staff…? Somewhere beneath the mess left behind by the avalanche no doubt, he thought with a sigh, before he nearly yelped as he was pulled up into the air by the wind.  
He could fly without the staff?  
Jack felt a grin forming. Oh, the possibilities… His mind snapped back to the task at hand, and he gave a sheepish cough, even though there was no-one to hear it. He let the wind carry him, wondering if it was the fact that he was channeling his powers though something that meant he could fly, over to a specific spot, and sighed as he got the hint.  
"Okay then, snow diving it is…"  
With an eye-roll, he leapt in the air, and let the wind drop him, enabling him to dive into the snow. He managed to get several metres down, and blinked as his hands instinctively grabbed onto a piece of wood.  
Okay, one piece down, Moon knows how many left to go…

Four more dives and he had the shattered pieces of the staff, which he quickly set about mending. True, he didn't need it, but it still sent a wave of familiarity and security through him when it was finally whole again.  
It was also a relief to find that his various cuts and bruises had healed themselves whilst his attention was elsewhere, and he stifled a yawn as he landed next to the others.  
Shady was up and about, grumbling about being '_perfectly fine thank you'_ and _'not needing to be coddled by a centuries old Russian with unresolved childhood issues'_.  
Jack couldn't help a snort at that, which startled the others, who hadn't heard him land. Spinning, he regretted making any form of noise, as he was attacked and roped into a ridiculously tight hug by Tooth, which sent him tumbling to the floor.  
A few minutes later, when he could breathe again, he had to repeat the process with North and Sandy, Sandy getting the same treatment as he was dragged into North's embrace along with Jack, which culminated with a 'squeezed half to death' winter spirit and a blob of golden sand on the ground which was trying to shuffle away to safety.  
Bunny took one look at the '_Go ahead, I dare you…'_ look on Jack's face, before simply giving him a high five. Shady, on the other hand, had no such inhibitions, and laid into Jack, jabbing him and threatening to tell Clover and Lily and Gale just how reckless he was, all the while daring the guardians to laugh at him.  
It took several subtle, covert looks, and sign language from Sandy but they eventually decided what should be done.  
North was going to get the yeti's to comb the mountainside for Ice Black, Tooth was going to get back to check on Baby Tooth and to actually get some work done, the same as Sandy, and Bunny was going to check on Burgess.  
Whereas Jack was going to distract Shady long enough for the others to sneak away, before getting him back, and then going to check on Jamie and Sophie.  
There would be plenty of time for actually celebrating later… Right now, they had work to do…  
_

Later that evening, Jack finally swooped into the study, exhausted both from earlier that day, and from Shady's rant, which was quickly taken up by the others who were situated at Shady's. He had finally managed to break free from them, and had checked in with Jamie and Sophie for an hour, before doing the same with the other kids, happy to see that they were back to their usual cheerful selves, before taking the scenic route back to Santoff Claussen. Well, he wanted to make the most of being able to fly again, after all…He took one look at the four in the room, who looked to be brimming with questions and who were grinning, clearly having heard about him having been ranted at by the others, and sighed.  
"Can't this wait…?"  
Bunny raised an eyebrow.  
"The interrogation? Or the dreamsand?"  
Jack frowned.  
"Dreamsand-?"  
Then he blinked as he found himself blasted with golden sand, and glared at Sandy, already feeling sleepy.  
"I was… tired… anyway… You just… wait till I… wake up… Sanderson…"  
With that, he gave a yawn and, after a final glare at Sandy, fell onto the sofa, asleep.  
North, Tooth and Bunny all looked at Sandy, Bunny whistling softly as North spoke.  
"He said full name, Sandy… Is not good…" Then Sandy mimed something, and North blinked, riddling it out. "Wait… What? He'll sleep for about… 36 HOURS? Sandy!?"  
Tooth was grinning, and gave the golden guardian a high five, before shrugging a the others.  
"What? It'll mean he can answer our questions, and it will give Sandy even more time to hide. It's a good plan."  
"In the short run…" Bunny said, under his breath, before getting to his feet and hoisting Jack up.  
"Right, I'll get him to his room, then I'll have to take off."  
As he left, the others exchanged looks, and Tooth giggled.  
"And he says he _isn't_ like an older brother…"  
North nodded, likewise grinning.  
"I have said before, but will say again. So much in denial… Oh, hey Phil. You have information on Ice Black?"  
They all sighed as they heard the report.  
So, he was on the loose again… But maybe if they all paid him a little visit whilst he was too weak to conjure more of the ice shades, and had a little… conversation with him, he might just decide to leave things alone? Then they could go back to their lives… Making children happy and fighting Pitch Black.  
They were all thinking it, and, along with a grinning Bunnymund who said everything else could wait, they all leapt through a portal…

* * *

**Vader: I thought you said no more cliffhangars?  
Me: It isn't. This is the end of the Ice Black arc now. He might come back here and there… Maybe… But this is the end of this chapter. Don't worry. I'll write a little about their…**_** visit **_**in the next chapter… Which I am hoping to make much better than the last few, which really have not been up to my expectations of myself... Oh, but I did put in some fluff! Which was requested! Buy maybe... *continues muttering to myself*  
Vader: *not brave enough to get involved with me arguing with my muse* Ah... I see.  
Me: *snapping back to 'reality'* Anyway, I thought you were annoying Han and Chewie?  
Vader: Well, I was… Until it turned out Yoda was loose on the ship…  
Me: spins to see empty chair and straitjacket, before face palming and leaping to my feet* Well, what are you waiting for!? Lets go!  
Me and Vader: *Run out of the door*  
The doctor: *appearing in the doorway* Hey, Long time no see-  
Me: Sorry Doc! *barging past him and calling over my shoulder* Emergency!  
Doctor: Again? What is it _this_ time? I'm sure it can't be as bad as an entire army of daleks and-  
Me: YODA'S LOOSE ON THE MILLENIUN FALCON! *notices empty sugar packets* AND HE'S ON SUGAR!  
Doctor: … Forget the daleks… *starts to run after us* This is serious…  
Sirius Black: Someone call my name?  
Me: *still running*Nope… But can you go and get Hermione? I need her handy little fires in jars… Some gullible fly… thing called Watto, on Tatooine, is willing to trade a skimmer for a dozen of them…  
Vader: *raises eyebrows, but decided to keep quiet*  
Sirius: Will do… *vanishes through a doorway*  
Me: Ah, I love having handy doorways to various fandoms…  
Vader: *gumbling* I don't… I even had to put '**_**Warning, Do Not Enter'**_** tape on the doorway to the Sherlock Fandom. John's raging… something about some fangirl letting slip to him that Sherlock is actually still alive…  
Me: *sheepish cough* Haha… yeah… who would do that…  
Vader: *suspicious look, then decides it isn't worth the trouble*  
All: *stop as we reach the Millenium Falcon Hangar Bay…*  
Me: *with a sigh* Well, tune in next chapter for the search for Yoda... Anyway, hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and what-not… Oh, and can you all give me a hand? Pitch and Ice Black are refusing to come into the footnotes, and maybe, if I have enough of you saying in a review that they have to get the backsides into gear and get here they might listen… Anyway, wish us luck… *takes point and flips into the Millenium Falcons doorway*  
Vader: *follows suit*  
Doctor: *using the sonic to lower the gang plank and saunter up it*  
Me: *Face-palms, Just as Chewbacca's voice echoes through the ship …*  
CHewbacca: NEEEUUUUUUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOARRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!   
Me: *takes a deep breath before vanishing into the shadows of the ship…***

* * *

**Guest review responses…**

**M-** Glad to hear it made up for the school day… And I pity you, the weather here has been really hot as well… Ah well, hope you enjoyed the footnotes/forenotes in this chapter as well!

**Sylvery-** Thanks :D Gad you enjoyed the battle, though this chapter's footnotes were a bit… Shall we say tame? Yeah, let's go with that, Lol :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

**MEC-** Haha, thanks :D And if you ever do get an account, be sure to let me know! And was this update soon enough? Lol :D

**21SidraCire-** Glad you like the idea of a branch off fic, and the idea of seeing how the guardians act when Jack isn't around is good one, even though Im keeping this fic as a separate project :D So I may slot it into the other fic :D As in, split the chapter into two sections, one from Jack's POV and one from the guardians :D Thanks for the idea, and there will be more info in the footnotes towards the end of this fic :D


	43. AN (Optional Footnote Extra)

**Hey guys, this is just an optional chapter, to make up for the recent update delays, completely made up of our mission to catch Yoda, who has decided to take a scenic route throughout several different fandoms :D I will be updating a new chapter soon after this one, but I would still love to know what you think of this :D Kind of a practise shot at what the other fic I have planned would be like :D Hope you enjoy! Seeing as I have been at the laptop for five hours straight, Lol :D)**

* * *

Me: Vader! Block the exit!  
Vader: *Rushes to block the doorway, but collides with Chewbacca as they both reach it*  
Yoda: *Cheerful jig as he bounds out of the door* Yippee! Gained Freedom have I!  
Me: *growling, before, very carefully and calmly, belting lightsaber and blaster back on* Right. Let me get this straight...  
Everyone else (Vader, Chewie, Han, The Doctor, Luke and R2D2): *Look at me nervously*  
Me: *pacing backwards and forwards in front of them* Yoda managed to sneak past some of the most renowned figures in the Star Wars universe, as well as someone who is widely considered as one of the best warriors in the known universe, and is now running around my base... WHY ARE YOU NOT GOING AFTER HIM!?  
Everyone: *legs it out of ship*  
Vader: *groans*

Me: *leaping down and joining them in the hanger bay What is it?  
Vader: Err... Um... Yoda just... *mumbles*  
Me: What?  
Vader: Yoda just... Entered the doorway to the Toy Story universe...  
Me: *freezes*  
Vader: *raises eyebrow, debating whether to back away or not*  
Me: *suddenly grins* Haha, I get to see Woody and Buzz again! LETS GO! *manically runs through the door to the Toy Story universe*  
Vader: *sighing* Why me...? Why do I have to be responsible for the insane author who is a fan of far too many things?  
Doctor: She's gone even more insane?  
Vader: Yup...  
R2D2: *Whistles*  
Vader: No, she hasn't reached the 'build a doomsday device' stage yet. Anyway, hadn't we better follow her...?  
Han: One question before we go Lordy-  
Luke: *sigh* Do you have to call him that? Seriously... He'll just sulk-  
Vader: Oi!  
Han: Whatever! I just want to know one thing... If we enter the Toy Story Universe... Will we become toys?  
Vader: … I don't know. But A, Raven could cause a lot of trouble if left alone, and B... I have always wanted to meet Zurg. I feel we have a lot in common...  
Han: *mutters* Yeah... You're both maniacs...  
Vader: I heard that-  
Chewbacca: *In Wookie speak* _Lets just move it!  
_All: *Follow me into the different universe...*

Zurg: I like your outfit...  
Toy Vader: Why Thank you... Your's too. I have to say, we both have similar tastes...  
Zurg: Indeed, though I think the black is much more forboding...  
Toy Vader: Again, thank you...  
Me: Oi! Stop nattering like a pair of old women, and come listen to what Rex has to say...  
Rex: Well... I saw the little green creature... and... he... err... Head out the door. He could be anywhere...  
Me: Right, thanks Rex... What do you reckon Buzz? Woody?  
Woody: I can see if Slinky can track him down-  
Jessie: NO NEED! LOOK OUT! CRAZY GREEN MONKEY ON THE LOOSE!  
Toy Yoda: *leaping around the room, dodging everyone, then blasts out of the door back into the corridor of doors...*  
Me: HAN! FOLLOW HIM! SEE WHERE HE GOES!  
Toy Han: *Runs through the inter dimensional doorway and back to the base*  
Toy Chewie(still irritated that he doesn't have real fur and it was, instead, turned to plastic in this universe): Runs after him.  
Luke: (after a quick goodbye to Buzz and Bullseye) *****decides to follow and also vanishes*  
Me: Right, thanks Woody, Guys... Feel fee to drop b any time. Come on Vader- Oh Moon, really? Now you're comparing weapons? Sorry Zurg, but a light saber is better than a blaster that fires harmless sponge balls. Now move your Sith Lord behind Vader, and get through that doorway!  
Zurg: *muttering* Good luck mate..  
Vader: Meh, I'm used to it... Alright, I'm going... *exits through the door*  
Me: Okay, you too doc- Doc? Oh... Oh for the love of... No! No giving Mr Piggy the plan for a tardis! *facepalms and drags him, throwing him through the door* Okay, now you R2- Oh... Really? *watches him play Uno with the three aliens and sighs as they all give me little cuddles and huge cute eyes* Oh... Okay then, R2 can stay for a while... But I am picking him up later!  
R2D2: *happy whistle and returns to the game*  
Me: *waves a the rest of them and jumps through, to see some very sombre faces* What? Where did he go?  
Vader: *sighs* To the DC Universe... And you know where this door leads to-  
Me: *gulping* The Bat Cave... We need to move, now! Oh, wait, Han? Chewie? I thought you needed to speak with Lando?  
Han: Oh, right... You can handle- *stops as I give him a glare* Ah, you'll be fine. Come on Chewiw, let's go see the swindler... *both head off*  
Me: Great... So it's an author, a Jedi in training, a former Jedi Knight and a Timelord... Great...  
Doctor: Greatest Muskateer team I've ever heard of... Where is Jack? He really enjoyed the weekend with the muskateers-  
Me: I don't want to know. NOW LETS GO!  
All: *leap through the portal, only to see Batman chasing Yoda around the cave*  
Batman: Give me my Candy Bar!  
Vader: Oh no... *turns to me, who's finally starting to realise that I heard what I thought I heard*  
Me: Oh... *bursts out laughing, ending up in a fit on the floor, giggling about bats and candy bars*

Batman: *glaring at Yoda, who is mocking him in the bat mask* Okay, Raven? You have to get him out of- Oh, come on, it is not that funny...  
Alfred and Tim (having just arrived in the elevator): *blink*  
Alfed: What's going on? Oh, hello Mistress Raven-  
Me: *managing to be slightly serious* Alfeed, I've told you, It's Raven... Hey Timmy.  
Tim: Yo Rave... What;s up?  
Me: Yoda... Yoda stole Bruce's candy bar, and the most serious caped crusador in the entire DC universe sarted raging and leaping around like an idiot... Show him Luke!  
Vader: I don't think that's a-  
Me: Thats why I never asked you. Luke! Show him the memory!  
Luke: *sighs but does so*

Tim: *joins in with my laughter, causing me to revert back to the fit of hysterics*  
Doctor: *lips quirk, but one look at the very annoyed looking Vader has him biting the inside of his lip* We need to catch the Gremlin...  
Yoda: Gremlin am I eh? Then much mischief I should be causing, Yes? *Uses the force to leap down and back through the portal*  
Vader: Luke! Follow him!  
Luke: *runs after Yoda*  
Doctor: *follows*  
Vader: *Hoists me up, carrying me towards the door*  
Me: *still snorting with laughter, which threatens to devolve into giggles again when I see Bruce looking forlornly at his empty candy bar wrapper, calls over his shoulder* Okay, Swing by any time, Timmy... You to Batsy... And you Alfred!  
Me and Vader: *exit through portal*  
Me: Okay, okay, you can put me down now!  
Vader: Is it safe?  
Me: … Probably not, No...  
Vader: Then Im not letting yo down until it is...  
Me: *tries to look serious whilst being held like a baby, and glares at the smirk on the Doctors face* Shut it Timelord... Now, where did he get to this time?  
Luke: … I'm just going to say it. He went to visit Scooby Doo.  
Me: … You're joking right?  
Luke: Nope.  
Me: *sigh* Great... Well, let's go see Scooby and the Gang...

Scooby: Yoga?  
Shaggy: This isn't the time for relaxing Scoob...  
Me: *facepalm* Nothing changes... So, you haven't seen him?  
Velma: On the contrary, when a green gremlin yelling, and I quote, 'Great Freedom is' runs right past you, nearly getting run over, you tend to remember it...  
Daphne: Yeah... It was kinda creepy...  
Fred Right, Gang. We need a-  
Me: Right gang, we need a plan. Problem is, it won't work, so lets just look for him. Yeah?  
Fred: *disgruntled* Dude, that's my only line...  
Shaggy: Yeah, but, like, it means we aren't going to be bait Scoob!  
Me: Of course not! *throws them both Scooby Snax, then blinks as a green ball hurtles towards me*  
Vader: *Ducks, sighing as he straightens up, till carrying me* Seriously, don't you want to get down now?  
Me: *smirking and stretching out to be more comfortable* Nope, I'm quite comfy... This may have to become a regular thing.  
Daphne: *weird smirk*  
Me: *blinks, then scowls* Oh man, honestly... Oh... err, guys? The green flying ball was Yoda...  
Shaggy: Like, how do you know?  
Vema: Well, it may be due to that fact that h is currently defacing the Mystery Machine with some kind of symbol.  
Me: *trying not to smirk*  
Vader: The symbol of the old Jedi Temple... Hmm, he's got a fine eye for detai- Ahem, right... Err... Get him?  
Scooby: I'll ret im... *runs after Yoda, who uses the force to leap down, before vanishing bck through the door*  
Me: *sigh* Anyone else starting to think this s turning into his idea of a game? LUKE!  
Luke: *already running through the doorway portal* On it!  
The Doctor; Me too!  
Me: Ah well, it was fun guys! Feel free to drop by whenever! *waves them off* Right then, let's go...

Me (Back in the hallway): Right then, where did he go to?  
Doctor: He went to the Valley of peace...  
Me: He's gone to annoy Shifu!? *leaps down off of Vader and legs it through the portal*  
Everyone else: *follows*  
Me: Oh no... PO! NO! DROP THE LIGHTSABER! Damn... Vader! Get the lightsaber! Doctor, Luke? Try to keep the residents of the valley (it being a demonstration by The Furius Five and the Dragon Warrior at the Jade Palace) I'll sort out Shifu and Yoda...  
Shifu: If it isn't the green gremlin!  
Yoda: If not it is the little lemur!  
Shifu: Why, you-  
Me: Oi! Yoda! Get bac here! Sorry Shifu, he broke out of his straitjacket...  
Shifu: Just get him out of my Valley?  
Me: Of course... *booth of us start chasing him across the rooftops* Oh, and how has life been for you? You haven't dropped by in a while?  
Shifu: Problems with Bandits in the Hajin Province.  
Me: Ah... Need a hand?  
Shifu: Thanks, but no thanks. We've pretty much got it wrapped up now.  
Me: You know, this thing where time passes at different rates in different universes gets confusing... Fred had grown a beard for Moon's sake... Oh, DUCK!  
Shifu: *ducks a roof slate, then throws it back, tripping Yoda up*  
Me: Ooh, nice shot... Oh, damn... LUKE! HE'S HEADING FOR THE PORTAL!  
Luke: *runs for Portal*

The Doctor: *clueless about the fact that the small rabbit he is talking to is flirting with him*  
Me: *Face palms* Doc! Help Luke! Vader, how's- *flinches as Vader ducks another bast from the lightsaber, sent by the ridiculously excited and enthusiastic Panda* Po!  
Po: *looks up* Yeah?  
Me: Please give him the lightsaber?  
Po: But-  
Me: I'll teach you that trick with the cards!  
Po: DEAL! *throws Vader the lightsaber*  
Vader: *catches it, then quickly steps back out of Mine and Shifu's way as we leap down and land*  
Me: Sorry guys, we'll get out of your way now. Oh, Tigress? Lease don't come looking for revenge on Yoda? I'll have to set my elves on you...  
Tigress: No Promises...  
Me: Well, in that case, why don't you all tag along, and we can make a thing of it. Gotta go! See ya! *leaps through Portal, followed by Vader* Okay Luke, where to next?  
Luke: Let's just say... Yoda Smash...  
Me: The Avengers? Oh man, we are on very thin ground with them at the moment... Luke? Doc? You two speak to Fury, me and Vader will find Yoda... Actually, Vader? Fury seemed kind of nervous around you, so you go with the doc, and Luke? You're with me.  
All: *nod and leap through, only to find one very annoyed looking team of Avengers waiting for us*

**Ten minutes later...**

Me: Tony! Banner! Go left! I'll take the right, Luke! Go center!  
All: *branch off*  
Me: *finally reaching the end of the corridor, shortly before the others, and staring at the grinning, ancient Jedi Master*  
Yoda: *twirling his walking stick like a baton*Want me you do? Come get me then, you shall try...  
Me: *noticing Banner turning a very familiar colour* Gladly... Go Hulk!  
Yoda: *dodges Hulk, then grabs a rope, lassoo-ing Hulk and yeehaawing as Hulk starts smashing through the entire ship*  
Me: Aww man, Fury is going to be furious...  
Tony: Haha, great... Can I use that?  
Me: Knock yourself out... Or, even better, get Hulk or Pepper to do it for you... *blinks as a familiar pair of voices come into ear shot, arguing*  
Vader: YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO MOCK THE CAPE. YOU WEAR AN EYE-PATCH!  
Fury: YOU WEAR A MASK!  
Vader: IT'S NECESSARY! THAT EYE-PATCH IS NOT!  
Me: *sighs* BOYS! Seriously, we have a rampaging Hulk on the ship, who ids being ridden by Yoda, and you two are arguing over fashion sense? I just- LOOK OUT! *dives aside as Hulk comes running through, and we all leap up to follow him*  
Yoda: *gets to the portal, leaps down from Hulk, and vanishes*  
Me: VADER!  
Vader: *follows him through*  
Me (as Luke and the Doctor arrive, out of breath): Get after them!  
Luke and the Doctor: *vanish*

Me: *Takes one look at the chaos that Yoda has caused, and gives Fury a wink* I'll... Ah, I'll just be of then. See ya! *leaps through* GUYS! Quick, Fury will be on my tail, where to next?  
Doctor: Sorry guys, I have to go... I just got a d=call from an old friend about Daleks riding on the London Eye...  
Me: Ouch... Good luck doc!  
Doctor: *runs off*  
Me: So... Where did he go?  
Vader: How do you feel about meeting an old friend?  
Me: Which one?  
Vader: Kakashi?  
Me: What are we waiting for!? *Hops through the door, only to see Kakashi glaring at Yoda, who is reading his book* Ooh, Hey Naruto... How did Yoda get the book?  
Naruto: Distracted Kakashi with an apple.  
Me: He likes apples?  
Naruto: No. Yoda hit him on the head with it. Decent shot.  
Me: Ah... Hey Kash!  
Kakashi: Master Raven... I assume this is to do with you?  
Me: He escaped. He'll most likely leave soon and go annoy someone else- Ah, there we go... Oi! Yoda! Not the Book!  
Yoda: *Throws it with uncanny aim to hit Naruto on the head knocking him over*  
Me: *racing after Yoda with the other two* SORRY GUYS! CATCH YOU LATER! *leaps through portal*  
Vader: *races straight through another door, yelling about the fate of the world as we know it, and causing me to blink as I realise what door it is...*  
Me: Oh no... He;s at Santoff Claussen... Luke! He's at the Pole!

**One full on battle, including all of the guardians, Pitch, Ice Black, Me, Vader, Luke, the elves, the yeti's, snowball fights, blasters, sword duels, pranks and general awesomeness...**

Me: You have got to be kidding me.. *looking down*  
Vader, Luke and the guardians: *Looking at the same spot*  
Vader: Oh curse it all to the Dark Side...  
Luke: Hey! I haven't heard you use that one before! And I know... Damn it...  
Yoda: snoring on the floor in a heap, clutching at a squirming elf like a teddy bear*  
Me: Right... Vader? Grab Yoda. Luke? Help them clear up here, I'll send my elves as soon as Yoda is secure...

**Back in the Base...**

Me (having sent elves to help with the clear up, put Yoda back into his play room, picked up R2D2 and having sorted out the various messes...): Right... Now then, where was the next chapter for the fic...  
Vader: Check the laptop. Under the RotG files...  
Me: Thanks... Lets get it ready to post, shall we...? *starts to finish off chapter, ready to post...*

**(Well, I hope you enjoyed this brief foray into my day to day virtual life :D Next chapter up momentarily :D) **


	44. Just Dance and The Pied Piper

**Me: Okay, this chapter is made up of a couple of requests from D.D Natanya, that are actually from quite a while ago… Anyway, I also blended in the requests for some lighter hearted stuff after all the drama and angst that there has been in the last few chapters, so I hope you all enjoy.  
Vader: … Wow.  
Me: What?  
Vader: The last time you did an opening like that was… well, before I got myself a starring role in the fore-notes…  
Me: Really? Huh… I **_**have**_** been looking over the fic as a whole, and my writing **_**has **_**changed… Ah well, Hope you guys enjoy anyway, And thanks to Koi Kyuui Kitai, PippaFrost, Metarose and ATV for the faves and/or follows!  
Anyway, I am now going to make the most of the decent weather, and chance for relaxing after that ridiculous game Yoda decided to play with us, and sunbathe- Oh no, **_**really**_**? A **_**snowstorm?**_** JACKSON OVERLAND FROST! *runs from room to get an elf to fetch Jack*  
Vader: *SIGHS AND FACEPALMS* Right then… I guess**_** I'll**_** say it… Enjoy the chapter everyone!  
_**

* * *

"And I _missed_ it? _Really_?"  
Jack pouted. Arms crossed and everything. The guardians had gone to 'talk' with Ice Black… whilst he was _sleeping?_ Oh… Someone was going to pay for this… Someone was _so_ going to pay for this… And he had the perfect way of ensuring it was _everyone_.

He was rather busy that day. Borrowing something from Jamie… Borrowing something from Sophie… Cajoling, conniving and puppy dog eyeing like there was no tomorrow to get everyone to the pole…  
Discovering that Clover and Iceman had lost their home in one of the avalanches caused by Ice Black, and pretty much insisting that they stayed at his place for as long as they needed, considering he was hardly ever their anyway and he had far too much room there.  
The two had accepted, and Jack had spent the greater part of the morning letting them choose their room, as they decided on one of the several outer living areas, and assuring them that they should consider it home for as long as they needed it to be.  
Not that it was going to stop him from roping them into his little plan…  
And, in the early afternoon, even running into an old friend. To say that he was surprised to the old spirit was an understatement…  
Seeing as the Pied Piper was well known as a recluse. Yet he turned up at the Pole for the sole purpose of talking with and congratulating Jack on everything that had happened since he had become a guardian. And, showing a fun side that he had recently almost given up on, decided to stay and see just how well Jack's plan would work…  
Everyone else's surprise at seeing the old spirit, still dressed in clothes of a similar style to when he was in his prime, had Jack grinning.  
Brilliant… If they were surprised, they would be easier to convince.  
Which is why he quickly got to the point.  
"Okay guys, truth or dare?"  
Before they could really think about it, they had all shared looks and said dare.  
Iceman was the first to realise how much of a mistake that had been, shortly followed by Bunny, Shady, the other guardians and then Gale, Lily and Clover.  
Jack gave an evil grin, before flexing his fingers.  
"Perfect… though I don't think the girls will mind this so much…"  
Before they could say anything to that, Jack had pretty much skipped from the room, and the Pied Piper settled himself on the sofa, stretched out and with an old, youthful gleam in his eyes.  
"This will be most gratifying…"

Half an hour later, and everyone aside from Tooth, Clover and Lily were gazing at the monstrosity in front of them. Gale was looking as though she was used to the torture device in front of her, and the Piper was busy enchanting the elves with his flute.  
Jack was staring at the contraption in front of them as though it was the most precious thing in the world, and he finally sighed, before turning to the others.  
"Okay, your dare is this… Dance Off!"  
Tooth's television, Jamie's Wii and Sohie's game of just dance were set up in front of them, and Jack held up a sheet of paper.  
"See? I even made a score sheet… Iceman? You and Sandy are up first!"  
They all stared at him. The guys completely incredulous, the girls amused, and the Piper with a grin.  
Then Iceman sputtered.  
"Y-You cannot… b-be serious?"  
Jack's grin turned to a smirk, and he flexed his fingers.  
"Oh, I am completely serious… And you know what I can be like when I'm completely serious…"  
They all exchanged looks, Tooth and Clover, who were within sight, sending him grins and subtle thumbs up, before Sandy gave a very dramatic '_oh what the hell'_ sigh, arms thrown up in the air and everything, before grabbing one of the controllers and tapping his foot, clearly impatient to get it over and done with.  
Iceman looked about to run for it, when he caught the combined looks of both Jack and Clover, and held his tongue, grabbing the remote Sandy threw to him as Jack settled back, grinning as Phil started filming it, without the others knowledge.  
Then, he manually chose the song, based on the whoops from the girls, and pressed play…

"_Hey Mickey… _Really?" Iceman said, when the first round had finished, Sandy having completely wiped the floor with him and even managed to set a new high score, which Jack knew would amuse Sophie.  
He filled in the grid, then looked at the next pair, one of whom Sandy would be facing in the next round…  
"Tooth vs North!"  
It came as no surprise when Tooth beat North, and Jack grinned as he filled in the slots.  
"Bunny vs Shady!"

It went on this way, Bunny beating Shady, Lily Beating Bunny, Clover beating Gale, and then Lily, though only narrowly… Flow managed to beat Phil, who Jack had roped in, but she then got beaten by Clover. Sandy actually beat Tooth, much to everyone's surprise, and, eventually, after all the smaller bouts, deciding the order of the runners up, had been completed, the list stood like this…  
North  
Phil  
Shady  
Bunny  
Iceman  
Flow  
Lily  
Gale  
Tooth

The two top spots would be determined by a dance off between Clover and Sandy, and everyone, despite their earlier dislike of the dare, had placed bets on the final outcome. Instead of guardians vs spirits, like Jack had been expecting, it had turned into guys vs girls, and the Piper, making sure to be in range of the camera -which only he, Phil and Jack knew about-, had even started hosting a mini dance off between the various elves, which had everyone in hysterics.  
Eventually, it all got serious, and all the noise died down as the two took their places.  
Jack had thought long and hard about the perfect song, and had finally decided.  
He had already teased Clover with a song, now it was Sandy's turn, and everyone burst out laughing as Sandman started playing…  
Despite the few seconds he took to glare at Jack, Sandy managed to make up the points, and the dance off concluded with Sandy being a mere 23 points ahead of Clover.  
Seeing as Jack had put them on expert, they both immediately keeled over, exhausted, and it was all Sandy could do to match the enthusiastic High Fives before Jack hauled him upright.  
Then, after a few minutes of subtle conversing, everyone turned to the pair, and Jack blinked, suddenly nervous.  
"Err… What's up guys?"  
Tooth grinned.  
"Well, you see sweetie… That wasn't really dancing… Now, we want to see some real dance. Maybe some more of this modern dance style…"  
Jack groaned as he realised where they were going with this, and raised an eyebrow at Sandy, who started signing.  
_Show them how it's done…  
_Jack blinked.  
"Seriously? That's all you have to say?"  
_Yes.  
_Jack started grumbling about golden oldies, before he was wrestled to the floor by North, Shady and Iceman, who then gave him the same question.  
"Truth or dare?"  
Jack knew what was at stake.  
If he said truth, he knew that they would ask him if he was using a camera, and, if so, where it was. He couldn't risk it… But if he said dare… Then again… There was the small fact that he could dance, as most of them well knew… So what on Moon could they… Oh, to Moon with it.  
"Dare."  
They all shared grins, before grabbing the results sheet, which Clover ran her expert eye over.  
"Come on then, Jacko… Let's see where you would be on our little leader board."  
Jack managed to stall long enough for the Pied Piper to stop recording, though Jack was sure he was recording this separately, before they all showed him the list of songs they had chosen.  
One each…

First he was against North, to the song 'Frosty the Snowman' Though Jack had no idea what it was doing on Just Dance, unless someone had done a little temporary tweaking… But his suspicions were pushed aside as he applied he little effort needed to complete the routine.  
Then he was against Phil, to some strange foreign song about yeti's that, again, should not have been on Just Dance. He had little trouble beating Phil either, and raised an eyebrow when the levels were boosted up so he was on normal.  
Then it was Shady's turn… He too dropped down a position on the leader board.  
As did Bunny.  
And Iceman, though Jack had to admit, Ice, Ice Baby was a very point proving choice of song.  
Then Flow was defeated, as was Lily, at which point, his skills level was shoved up to expert.  
None-the-less, Gale, Tooth and Clover all got bumped down a place, much to the guys' amusement.  
But then came the real dance off… The one they had all been eager for…  
Sandy vs Jack…  
Both skills settings were on the highest, and one of the fastest songs on the game had been selected.  
With a shared eye-roll, they both began the final bout…  
Even Jack was gasping for breath at the end of it, but he had done it. There was a difference of only _14 points, _but Jack managed to beat Sandy. Then, of course, he was roped into a dance off with the winning elf, who was actually pretty good, before he was allowed to slump down.  
He knew what this was.  
This was a test to see who would be the first to crack. Him? Or the others. Well, it was not going to be him. Though his secret weapon, also known as recordings of all of this, would be the weapon of last resort… His secret weapon…  
And really? They wanted to play twister? How could that work?  
Apparently, by being in teams.

North, Bunny, Iceman and Snowden- a friend of Iceman's that he had roped into this for the sole purpose of having an even number for this game- in one team, Lily, Shady, Flow and Phil in another, then Jack, Tooth, Sandy and Gale in the last.  
Basically, they were going to have three people per game, one from each team, and it would be one point for the first out, two points for the second and three points for the winner.  
Simple enough…  
Round one…  
North vs Lily vs Gale…  
Lily, to everyone's surprise, was the first out, but it was only a narrow thing between her and North, leaving The Pied Piper to start totting up the scores.  
Round two…  
Snowden vs Phil vs Sandy…  
Phil was the first to fall, shortly followed by Bunny, leaving Sandy as the victor.  
Team two finally caught a break in the next round.  
Bunny vs Flow vs Tooth.  
Bunny as the first out, then it was a while before Flow finally managed to beat Tooth.  
Then, it was, again, the match people had been waiting for…  
Iceman vs Shady vs Jack.  
All of them quite flexible, and all of them determined not to lose…  
The game went on for almost five minutes before Shady finally became the first o leave, then it was a further ten minutes before Iceman folded, and Jack was declared the winner.  
That left the final scores as Team one, 7 points, Team 2, 6 points and Team 3, the clear winners, with 11 points.

Jack sighed as Tooth and Lily finally convinced everyone to play Limbo. Okay, so his plan for vengeance had turned into a chance for everyone to be humiliated… Ah well, all the more fun for him…  
Snowden had had to leave after the last round, But Jack, having gotten on well with him, had agreed to meet up sometime soon with the others… Which meant they couldn't do it in teams, but, rather, would do it by everyone gradually losing against the steadily lowering pole.  
North was first… He was out at level two.  
Bunny was out at level three…  
Iceman at level four, along with Lily…  
Shady and Clover were out at level five…  
Gale at level seven…  
Flow at level eight…  
Sandy at level nine… By this time, the Pole was less than a metre from the floor, and Tooth and Jack exchanged competitive grins as they tackled level ten…  
Tooth fist pumped the air, as Jack failed at level eleven, even as she continued to level 12, using her wings as balance.  
No-one was in the mood to call it cheating, and she was declared the winner.  
Eventually, though, They all got tired of playing random games, and, instead, Jack was surprised to find himself instinctually grabbing at something thrown to him.  
He grinned as he realised it was a flute, and he raised an eyebrow to the Piper.  
"What did you have in mind, Piper?"  
The older spirit grinned.  
"Let's see how well you've remembered…"  
Bunn snorted softly.  
"Well enough to be able to hypnotise all of my googies…"  
Piper blinked, then smiled.  
"I approve."  
Now it was Jack's turn to grin.  
"Thought you might… What's the target?"  
He nearly laughed outright when the Piper gestured to a small knot of elves in the corner of the room, and the others caught on a second later, grins starting to form on all of their faces… Though North was wondering how this might impact his future… What with Jack being able to control the elves and all…  
Piper started with a few notes, giving Jack time to pick up the pitch and tone, before he played a couple of practise notes.  
He grinned as they seemed to doze lightly, then thought about what to make them do…  
Aha, did he not say to Sandy he would get him back for blasting him with dream sand a couple of days ago? And turning his dream sand different colours was getting dull…  
Now… How about setting elves on him for the next week or so?  
Leaving a faint subconscious impulse to want to follow him around should do it…  
He started playing a tune, and the Piper, realising what he was doing, chuckled, giving Sandy a pitying look…  
But, before Sandy could do more than consider whether to run or not, dozens of elves all started bombarding him.  
Jack eventually started laughing so hard that he was in stitches on the floor, and all of the others, even North, were laughing at the sight of the small elves clinging to Sandy even as he tried to shake them off…  
The Piper smiled, when Jack finally recovered enough to speak coherently again.  
"That must be the strangest way I have ever seen my teachings used… But I approve all the same. You are the guardians of fun after all… Though that does not surprise me."  
"It doesn't?"  
"No. Even when I knew you all those decades ago… Deep down, I knew there was something different about you… You were much too chirpy and mischievous for your own good…"  
"Hey, those squirrels had it coming."  
"How?"  
"They were throwing there nuts at me. And don't tell me it was an accident, one of them even seemed to smirk as it threw an acorn. Hit me right on the head too… The little critter had good aim…"  
"Didn't mean you had to get them to do cartwheels for three hours on end…"  
"Oh, come on, you have to admit it was funny…"  
"Maybe a little… Though I fail to see what the rabbits did to you…"  
"What rabbits?"  
"The ones that followed you around all the time…"  
"… I didn't use the flute on them. Hey just seemed to like to stalk me."  
"They aren't the only ones!" This was Lily, who, like the others, had stopped laughing in order to find out more about Jack's past. "Trust me, any rabbits he comes across take to him instantly… Even deer follow him around whenever he is near them."  
Iceman grinned.  
"I can vouch for that. A couple of months ago, he ended up getting buried beneath a mound of rabbits…"  
"Oi," Jack said, indignant, "I still say that that was Lily's fault…"  
She whacked him across the head, giving a far too innocent grin, and shrugging.  
"Aww, but you know I'm far too sweet to do anything like that…"  
Jack snorted, just at the same time as Iceman, earning them both a whack across the head, as Lily scowled at him.  
"I'm not that bad…"  
The Piper looked between her and Jack, then grinned at the winter spirit.  
"Ah, I see what you mean… So much denial…"  
Jack gave Lily a quick grin, clearly realising that that statement had put him on very dangerous ground.  
"Hey, it was just a running Joke- OW!" He ran from the room, Lily hot on his heels, along with everyone else's laughter, before she could hit him again.

It was almost half an hour before he got back, Lily trailing behind him with a brownie cookie, and Flow gave him an incredulous look.  
"You tamed her with a cookie?"  
Iceman and Clover shared a look, as did the guardians, and, in perfect unison, they all said,  
"They are very good cookies…"  
Which, of course, prompted Jack being hounded until he quickly prepped a few batches for the elves to bake, with the warning that if a single one as missing, they would be on shelf stacking duty for the next month.

Everyone was very adamant that they could stick around for an hour whilst they cooked, and they ended up playing trivia, more specifically, History.  
It was the first game all night that North was decent at, but even the combined brainwork of him, Sandy and Bunny was no match for Jack.  
The others had opted to watch, and, even though they leant a hand to the three guardians now and then, the Pied Piper even volunteering his wider knowledge of certain time periods, Jack still ended up winning by a long shot.  
In response to how, he simply grinned, shrugging.  
"You heard about it, I lived it… But I'm telling you, the answer for the question about the revolution? So not true…"  
Then Lily roped him into playing Disney Trivia, though he had no idea why she had it, in which he and Tooth teamed up with Lily against everyone else, who subsequently lost against the three Disney fans.  
Then came monopoly.  
Which Jack completely sucked at. But, with the excuse that he had to go help the elves, he managed to shove his place onto Iceman, who he knew would not do too badly… Though I came as no surprise, when he walked in half an hour later, to see that North had won.  
The older guardian was a fan of the game, and had yet to lose to anyone…  
The again… So was the Piper, and, with an extremely solemn air, the two sat down to the clean board…  
And so, with several expectant onlookers and many, many cookies, the greatest monopoly chase of the century began…

As Jack watched, munching away on Cookies, several thoughts sprang got mind.  
One, why was it that everything he did always ended up being fun?  
Two, he really needed to drop in on the Piper more often…  
Three, they really needed to do things like this more often…  
And four. He really needed to try out his masterpiece of an expression on Tooth. He had been working on it for a great many years, with Lily and Clover, but he had only ever used the basics on Tooth, and she was fast becoming immune to it… Maybe it was time to u things to a whole other level?  
Oh, and five… Why on earth would that have popped into his head at this particular random moment in time? Ah well, it wasn't the first random thought that had entered his head… He had also wondered why on Earth North had chosen to be the iron on the monopoly board… Though that might not have been such a random thought after all…

It was a couple of hours before they game finally reached its end, and North's winning streak was finally broken as the Piper finally bankrupt him when the guardian landed on a hotel…  
Jack wasn't alone when he gave a sigh, and he handed North a pity cookie.  
But the guardian seemed happy enough to have been able to play with the Piper, and, at the enthusiastic groans, finally gave in and decided on no more games that evening.  
It wasn't long, then, before the Piper had to leave, and Flow, Lily and Gale were not far behind.  
Then Tooth head off, back to the Palace, just as Sandy left, and Shady decided that he had better leave as well.  
Jack decided that he would stay at his own place that night, just to make sure Clover and Iceman had settled in okay, and the three said goodnight, using an orb to head to the monastery, leaving Bunny and North to laugh about how quickly things could turn to far too much fun with Jack around… North was quick to admit that, before Jack came into their lives, he had never had so much fun on such a regular basis… Bunny had grinned at that, saying the exact same thing, and, leaving North to finish off the rest of the cookies, head off.

Jack grinned as he said a quick goodnight to Clover and Iceman, chatted for a short while with a couple of the Yeti's, and finally collapsed onto his bed with a yawn.  
Now then… What could he plan next…?

* * *

**Me: Okay, a few things I need to say this chapter…  
Number one, AngelofGrace96 sent an email to the management, asking them to add Baby Tooth as a character, and they agreed! So, just spreading the word around :D Thanks Angel, and I will definitely put Baby Tooth in the next chapter :D  
Number two… OVER 600 REVIEWS!? *leaps around joyfully, squealing, only to have Vader hoist me up and dump me in a small room*  
Vader: Burn it off, Raven…  
Me: *doesn't bother arguing and simply continues leaping and dancing around with joy and utter, awesome, shocked surprise*  
Vader: Well, she's happier than I've seen in a while… Anyway, I think I will just end this here, and the responses to the guest reviews are written below. I had Raven write them earlier, before she found the review count, as I knew this would happen… *sighs* She was honestly not expecting this fic to go so far… Anyway, we hope you enjoyed… And till the next chapter then, younglings…**

* * *

**Toothy****- Interesting insight into your life, Lol :D And wow… 27? Wish it was that hot in the UK… *sigh* Anyway, glad you liked the chappie :D**

**Guest****- They are both great ideas, but I have already decided against the whole birthday thing for Jack, as I think it would turn too angsty with all the memories, and Jack the Exterminator sounds a bit… I dunno… Did you want to give me a scenario and I'll see? Either way, thanks for reading and reviewing :D**

**Avywoto-**** Thanks for pointing it out. The eye-roll kind of comes naturally as a filler expression, but I will take it into account and try to widen the variety of expressions a bit :D**

**Mec****- Hey, I'm not sure how Vader feels about sharing me, so you will have to ask him… Oh, hang on… What's that Vader? Oh! No! No hunting down the awesome readers! After all, sharing is caring… Honestly… Sorry about that… (Vader breaking into my PM's is something you may have to get used to if you get an account, Lol :D ) Ahem, where was I? Oh, right… I have just sent a copy of your little rant (which was very enjoyable by the way) to the lairs' of Pitch and Ice Black, so hopefully they will hear it soon… Many thanks for that :D And hopefully this was updated quickly enough for you? Lol… Wouldn't want you reaching the brink of insanity after all :D**

**Guest 2-**** I'm assuming that that is you Dark? Hope so, or I'll sound a little dumb at the moment :D And Jack? Something safe and involving a lot of common sense? Interesting thought, Lol :D**


	45. Ice Skating and Snowballs

**Me: Okay guys, a combination of several ****requests and ideas in this chapter, from some awesome readers... And thanks to rainycasey, deadwithoutyou (for also faving me as an author!) and EraPenn, for the follows and/or faves! Hopefully you-****  
****Vader: NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!****  
****Me: *blinks, looking at the doorw****ay, then shrugs, about to speak again when...*****  
****Vader: NONONONONONONONONO! NOT THE CAPE! AND THE MASK! THAT LITTLE GREEN MONSTER HAS GONE TOO FAR THIS TIME!****  
****Me: Oh... Cripes. *under breath* Not the cape… *shouting* Vader!? What's up?****  
****Vader: *storms in*****  
****Me: *freezes, then bursts out laughing*****  
****Vader: *outfit now entirely covered in bright pink and blue feathers, including the cape, glares at me* This is not funny. Yoda has gone too far this time!****  
****Me: It's … fine... *hiccupping and managing to keep a strai****ght face, whilst holding my hands behind my back and using my wrist com to get the security cameras to take several photos* We can fix it...****  
****Vader: HE USED SUPERGLUE! WHERE ON CORUSCANT DID YODA GET SUPERGLUE!?****  
****Obiwan: Err... In the Earth styled bazaar act****ually... **_**On **_**Coruscant.****  
****Me: Earth styled- wait, what?****  
****Obiwan: C3PO wanted a change in his line of work...****  
****Me: I- Don't even want to know. *turns back to Vader* He **_**super**_**-glued feathers onto your outfit? Hear that Killuaxme? He used your idea! He must be hack****ing into my-****  
****Vader: **_**Who**_** gave him the idea?****  
****Me: Err... No-one... Vader! Come back here!****  
****Vader: Nope. I am going to see this Killuaxme, then-****  
****Gok wan: Really? In that outfit?****  
****Me: Wait... What are you doing here?****  
****Obiwan: Damn auto correct... It replaced me wi****th Gok Wan! Right, sorted... ****  
****Gok Wan: *vanishes* ****  
****Obiwan: Anyway, you're going out in **_**that**_**?****  
****Vader: *grumbling about it being a good thing he has spare suits*****  
****Me: Well, that was random... WOAH! *leaps aside to dodge a nightmare, and a block of exploding ic****e*  
****Pitch and Ice Black: WE'RE BACK! ****  
****Ice Black: With the various threats and things we have got from various readers, we decided that they were a bigger risk to our health that even you, Raven...****  
****Me: Really? They have learnt...****  
****Rafiki: *appears* STOP STEAL****ING AND PARA-PHRASING MY LINE! *vanishes*****  
****Me: Again... Random... Anyway, I'm glad you're here Icey... You see, Luke Skywalker and Jack have been getting along rather well, and Luke wants to have a... **_**chat **_**with you about recent events...****  
****Ice Black: *gulps* ****Vader's kid?****  
****Me: The very same...****  
****Ice Black: Huh... *suddenly spins and tries to vanish*  
****Me: *Grabs a lasso and catches him* Huh... Lasso? WHAT IS GOING ON HERE! WHAT IS ALL THIS MADNESS! Ahem, anyway... You aren't going anywhere... Pitch! Stay Right There! Right, I'm going to get these two secured, so enjoy the chapter whilst I do guys!**

* * *

"NORTH! MOVE!**" ****  
**North leaped out of the way just in time to avoid thewinter spirit that was currently sliding himself to a stop. Having arrived from the top of the huge snowdrift, on skis of all things, Jack stepped off of the two deadly pieces of wood –as North decided to call them- giving him a sheepish grin.  
"Sorry. Didn't think you'd be out here, especially away from that train design."  
"Train design is finished. Though I should have known better than to simply expect peace around Pole… Da?"  
"Well, at least I didn't give skis to the elves…"  
"… I do not even want to know. I did not know you ski?"  
"And snowboard. I thought nothing was going to surprise you guys anymore? I just figured that, seeing as I'm a winter spirit, I may as well give it a go. Shame I crashed my snowboard a few years ago though…"  
"You crashed a snowboard?"  
"I was snowboarding on the slopes of Everest… Mainly because I was bored and it sounds cool to say I snowboarded on Everest. Hey, you ever skied North?"  
North blinked.  
"No. I distrust flimsy pieces of wood."  
Jack snorted.  
"Who said anything about wood?" He held up the skies to reveal that they were, as a matter of fact, made of ice. "Reinforced ice. I have no idea how it's possible, but it is, and it's nearly impossible to break. I spent months actually trying, then managed it after a single day of snowboarding. Typical…"  
North, not sure how to respond to Jack's apparent love of dangerous sports, simply nodded.  
"Da… But maybe come inside before elves see skis?"  
Jack grinned.  
"Might be a plan…" As they head in, Jack cocked his head at North. "Hey, do any of you guys skate…?"  
_

Tooth giggled as she span around on the small layer of ice Jack had created. The ice skates on her feet- which Jack had created by letting ice trail over her feet, up around her ankles, and then forming a thin blade on the bottom of the shoes- were actually really comfy, and she had found, to her delight, that she quickly became proficient at Ice Skating. She was now cautiously attempting spins and twirls, using her wings to aid her balance, whilst Jack rolled his eyes at the others.  
"Aww, come on guys!"  
North, having made the excuse that he had to work, had managed to get out of it, and Bunny was simply giving Jack a look that said no way was he getting onto the ice.

So that left Sandy. And the oldest guardian knew it too.  
But, unlike the others, he was curious, and, once Jack had shown him how to create the skates, he replicated it with dream sand and head onto the ice. He did not get it as fast as Tooth, but he was eventually skating easily to and fro.  
Jack gave Bunny an eye roll, forming a pair of the ice skates on his own feet, before he leapt onto the ice, landing in a twirl, and casually spinning and gliding, backwards, across the surface. Placing a hand to the ice, he let the surface grow larger, and started showing Tooth some different twirls, though Sandy decided he was more than comfortable just sauntering and gliding around.

Time travelled quickly that morning, and it was soon the early afternoon. But, before Tooth head off, she was insistent that Jack show her some of the paired moves on the ice.  
After a lot of wide eyes and wheedling, he agreed, ending up showing her an entire routine.  
Half an hour later, after some practise, Tooth thought she had it, and decided to try a couple of moves.  
She had thought she might be nervous about letting someone else hold her up over the ice, but found that she had no qualms about it with Jack.  
It wasn't long, however, before she really had to leave, and Jack grinned.  
"Another time? Hey, and I might be able to get the others to come along… Aspen and Clo have this great routine… And me and Clo have this weird move that we made up only a couple of months ago…"  
Tooth grinned.  
"Definitely…" She quickly called over to Sandy, as she gave Jack a hug and rose into the air. "See you later Sandy! Bye Jack!"  
With that, she flew off, leaving Sandy to sigh about the fact that he really should be leaving too.  
Though that might explain why the children's dreams were all filled with snow and skating that night…  
Jack decided to leave the ice where it was, and flew inside, rolling his eyes as he saw elves, with normal skates on their feet, or even with just their boots, mimicking the movements.  
Then he grinned… He had a plan… A GREAT plan… but he would need help.  
With that thought, he flew off to find Aspen- the name they had all taken to calling him, though he didn't seem to mind- and Clover…

They both stared at him.  
For several moments after he had stopped talking.  
Then Aspen coughed, blinking.  
"You're… being serious?"  
Jack nodded.  
"Yep. Boredom and a curious mind have led me to believe it is possible."  
"And you want us to help?"  
"Well, I could teach them on my own, but it would take forever…"  
Clover giggled.  
"For a good reason. You cannot be serious?  
Jack nodded.  
"I am. Deadly serious."  
Clover sighed, as the pair shared an eye roll before turning back to Jack.  
"So, we're teaching the elves to ice skate… Great…"  
_

To the surprise of all of them, the elves did not take long to learn. Taking them out in shifts, Jack and the other two managed to teach about a hundred per day, and North, though he was wondering what Jack was up to- him having been unusually quiet that week- had no idea.  
However, it was nearly a month before they were all twirling around without Jack needing to supervise-though several collision did occur, most likely deliberate- and it was lucky they finished when they did, because now that things had been lax for a couple of days, Tooth had asked if they could spend another day skating again. And this time, Baby Tooth and several of the other fairies wanted to join in.  
Jack, instructing several of the elves that were actually taking this seriously, much to his total shock, paired them up with a fairy each, telling them to teach them the basics.  
Tooth, astounded by the fact that the elves could skate, spent almost an hour simply watching, as the elves taught the fairies.  
Jack, on the other hand, had decided to teach Baby Tooth.  
After a couple of hours, and, on a whim, Jack stopped, and hmm'ed, before forming a block of ice and shaping it into the form of a tiny person. Then, like he did with the ice animals and things like that, brought it to life. But, instead of leaving it to its own devices, he reached out to it, trying to feel for it.  
Tooth and North, who had decided to join them for the show, both stared at him strangely, until he broke off long enough to explain.  
"I've been experimenting with different things. Sometimes, if I can get enough concentration up and everything, I can actually connect to the ice and… well, it's almost like I am the ice. It's kinda cool actually. Though I have definitely got to figure it out properly…"  
Tooth, tying to puzzle that out, spoke out loud.  
"So… You can control the ice… Like you_ are_ the ice?"  
"Something like that. I am honestly not sure…" Then he grinned, giving up on his pet project, and, realising that Baby Tooth was perfectly fine on the ice, got up to greet Clover and Aspen, who had just arrived.  
"Looks like all the hard work paid off!" Aspen said, laughing as he and Jack high fived, though Clover simply shook her head.  
"Men… They come up with the most ridiculous ideas…"

Or not so ridiculous, as it turned out.  
Everyone was sent into hysterics as the elves did their little showy off-y dances, that, up until they started having a snowball fight at the same time, actually went really well.  
It took several minutes for Jack, who was laughing and dodging and twirling and basically trying to leap and dodge the flailing elves, to break up the fight, which, of course, led to him being stalked, on the ice, by several of the fairies.  
Then Tooth whispered something to them, and they buzzed off, before eagerly turning to watch Jack with a keen eye.  
He only had time to give her a raised eyebrow, wondering what on Moon she had planned this time, before he felt his wrist grabbed and found himself being spun around.  
He slid to a smooth stop, half glaring at, half amused by Clover's sneaky attack, before she motioned to the fairies, speaking in a conspiratorial whisper.  
"They won't go until they've seen you dance on ice."  
"Bu they've seen me dance-"  
"Not on the ice…"  
Jack took the whole of half a second to decide, before grinning and grabbing Clover's hand, spinning her in a circle and using the momentum to lift her into the air, still spinning.  
They were both grinning as he lowered her down, and they started going through a basic routine they had perfected years ago.  
Aspen, having Ice Skating as a favourite hobby, had spent a lot of time doing it, and as soon as he realised Clover had a knack for it, it was a very regular thing for them. Which was why Jack motioned for Aspen to take over, spinning Clover off so that the other spirit could smoothly twirl her into another dance.  
But, before he could escape, he found himself accosted by Tooth- much to North's amusement and subsequent regret that Bunny was not here to witness it- and ended up going over the routine he had showed her before. It wasn't long before her quick mind picked it up, and they were soon spinning around, doing lifts, twirls and gliding around the other pair in complicated patterns that the elves immediately tried to replicate, only for it to devolve into another snowball fight, which North decided to try and sort out.  
Meaning the others quickly stopped skating to see how it would turn out.  
It turned out badly.

It was a matter of moments before North was buried up to his beard in snow, and Jack was almost doubled over with laughter as he grabbed his staff and swiped it all away with a mischievous glint in his eyes.  
Because as the snow swept away, it formed snowballs, which joined the rapidly growing piles dotted everywhere.  
The meaning was simple…  
It was strange how easily they gravitated into teams.  
Their earlier enmity forgotten, the elves sided with North, as Aspen and Clo dove behind a pile together, leaving Jack and Tooth to do the same…  
North cursed in Russian as he was pelted just before he found the cover of one of the piles of snow. He could not wait to get Jack back for this…But till then… He leapt up, throwing several snowballs, before ducking down again, then running to a nearby snowdrift.  
Jack, noticing this, nudged Tooth.  
"Cover me!"

She nodded, and he grabbed his staff, letting the wind carry him to the top of the high snowdrift, before forming his newest weapon. Then, leaving his staff on the top of the snowdrift, he shoved himself away from the edge, letting the wind speed him up until he was skiing at a ridiculously fast pace.  
The basic skies were more than enough for what he had in mind, and, upon nearly reaching the bottom, directed himself behind North, who turned just in time to see Jack spin and slide to a stop, sending a wave of wind aided snow over the older guardian, burying him again.  
As North spluttered, shoving his head out, his half-hearted glare morphed to a grin, as he saw that Jack had tumbled from the skies, his laughter having knocked him off balance, and had tumbled into the snow drift, where he managed to get to his feet, buried up to his chest.  
Still grinning, Jack widened the small hole he had made, ducking down inside it, before resurfacing with dozens of snowballs.  
How he could make them so fast without the aid of his powers, north could never figure out, but he knew where his aim came from, and the winter spirit used it to good effect, taking out the various elves that tried to dig North out, as well as throwing the occasional snowball at his head.

North eventually managed to dig himself out, and Tooth, who had, up till now, been battling Clover and Aspen, called a truce and whispered to them.  
The pair grinned, and both Jack and North sighed as they took in the meaning of this.  
Okay then, looked like a change of teams…  
Then Jack grinned, a plan forming, and started whispering to North…  
_

As North took the brunt of the attack, with the elves, Jack used a variety of leaps and rolls to get out of sight, around the curve of the snowdrift, before he swiftly clambered to the top.  
Forming several larger than normal snowballs, he positioned them at the top of the snowdrift, before grabbing his staff. This was going to be great…  
He threw a snowball at North, who sighed at the terrible signal before ducking behind a pile of snowballs.  
Then, even as the other figured out that something was up, Jack sent the snowballs off the edge of the snowdrift where the immediately started to get bigger and bigger…  
The other caught sight of them too late, and, before they could run, the huge balls of snow had caught up with them.  
Jack guided them after the three of them, even using the wind to lift one into the air, and, as soon as they were close enough, made them explode. The one in the air ended up showering Tooth with freezing flakes of snow, even as the ones on the ground exploded with enough snow to virtually bury the two spirits.  
After about ten minutes of watching them try to wade out of it, however, Jack decided to lend them a hand and swept the snow away, leaving them up to their knees in it. At Clover's glare, he shrugged.  
"No point in making it_ too_ easy…"

Then it was cookies. Still warm cookies, which was even better.  
Sandy, as he popped in quickly, was annoyed to have missed it, but the knowledge that the plan he, North, Tooth and Bunny had come up with to get back at Jack in a prank war made up for it, and he flew away with a grin on his face that made Jack almost suspicious…  
Was there something going on here that he didn't know about…?  
Ah well, he'd find out soon enough…  
As he walked Aspen and Clover home, from the place the orb had decided to leave them, in the forest, his suspicions grew, and, as he said goodbye, the 'Be Careful' that Clover sent him, grinning and with a glint of humour in her eyes, which was matched, if not exceeded by Aspen, sent him into an even more suspicious state.  
He said a quick goodnight to North, Tooth having already left, before he head to his own place…  
Where he began preparing for every eventuality…  
Blasters… and paint bombs… and glitter bombs… and... well, everything really.  
Because his senses were tingling, and something told him that a lot of fun was heading his way soon…

* * *

**Luke: You're such a nerf-herder!  
Ice Black: And you are a complete… waste of space. Seriously, I doubt you could hurt a fly!  
Vader: Oi! That's my son you're talking to! *uses the force to lift Ice Black into the air and spin him around, like he did with Tony, then, after a few minutes, dumps him on the floor* Luke, you must understand that, around Raven? She really does not mind you actually using the force on people… as long as it has a humorous factor into it-  
Me: *still blinking from the overall awesomeness of Vader* AWW! You went over protective Daddy Mode! That's so sweet! *still squealing from the cuteness of it all* I just… I MUST GIVE YOU A HUG! *runs and leaps, grabbing him around the neck and squeezing*  
Vader: *Sighs*  
****Luke: I'll… err… I'll just… See you guys later then… *grabs Ice Black* Okay then Mr Olwen Rollo Chrissie Fir-Pine Kanchenjunga Popocatepetl Snow, you're coming to have a little chat with… Hmm, I haven't seen Hulk in a while.****  
Ice Black: WHY WOULD YOU TELL THEM ALL MY NAME!****  
Me: *still squeezing* Because it's ridiculous, and can inspire so many nicknames… Such as Piney whiney… ****And Popeye… ****And ****plus, ****Chrissie is such a girl's nam****e! **** Hey, guys? **_***to you readers**_*** Any more ideas for mocking nicknames? Even if they are not related to his actual name…****  
Vader: I like that… The readers clearly… **_**'dislike' **_**Mr Kitty Cat-****  
Me: Nice one...****  
Vader: Thanks… ****Anyway, ****I'm sure they will come up with some awesome one****s, which we could use in the next footnote… Oh, and ****I will see you soon Luke.****  
Luke: Sure… See ya Raven… *walks out, dragging Ice Black by the ear*****  
Pitch: Err… Have I been forgotten..? **_**AGAIN?!**__**  
**_**Me: *finding Vader's shoulder really comfy all of a sudden and yawning* Whatever Pitchy Witch…****  
Vader: *rolls his eyes, swinging me, once again, into-****(****what I am now changing the name of, seeing as it sounds cooler and more fan-girlish****, as pointed out by D. D. Natanya, than **_**'Like a Baby'**_**)****- ****a ****bridal ****style position*********  
Me: Ooh, even comfier… ****  
Vader: *sighing, half sarcastic, half amused* Why Thank you… Glad to be of service…****  
me: Okay guys… Till next time! And guest review responses are written below. Hey, ****Vader? Can you annoy Pitch somehow?****  
****Vader: *somehow managing to grab a walkie-talkie whilst holding me* Why Of course… Until next time Readers!**

* * *

MEC- Buddy, Vader is really not in a good mood right now, but he says he might be able to share… (I had a little chat with him :D ) And glad you enjoyed the update! And that you found it funny :D  
And yay! I'M INSANE TOO! Though you probably got that from the footnotes… Lol :D  
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter!

M- Glad you enjoyed, and yay! Multi-fandom Buddy! Nice to know, Lol :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!

Guest- Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed :D


	46. Pitch: A Chapter of Six Tales

**Me: *randomly skipping and humming the death march*  
Vader: *eyeing me suspiciously* You seem... Cheerful...?  
Me: Oh, yep. I am. Because I finally got Pitch off my back.  
Vader: Ah... How?  
Me: *grins, turning to humming another one bites the dust* You'll see... Oh, and a belated thanks to LunaTheLoneWolf for her fave of the fic! My e-mails went a little bleurgh, so I couldn't put it in the last chapter... And thanks to Just-A-Taste-Of-What-You-Paid, Xion5 (Thanks for faving me as an author too Xion!) and The Earth Elemental for the faves/follows! Anyhoooooowwwwwwwww... Err, yup. That is all... No doubt chaos will ensue at the end of the chapter, but who knows... we may yet be lucky! Enjoy the chap-  
Vader: _Bleurgh?_ Really?  
Me: Mate, Grammer problems again? Ya need ta chill... seriously... Actually, let's make that literal. *whistles a very specific tune*  
****Jack: *suddenly flies in* Yo Rave, whaddya need?  
****Me: Vader needs to chill...  
****Jack: Literally?  
****Me: You know me far too well...  
****Jack: Yup... *suddenly hugs Vader*  
****Vader: *shivering slightly* What, by the force, was that for?  
****Jack: You needed to chill! Woah! Don't blame me! Blame MEC-  
****Me: JACK! NO GIVING VADER NAMES!  
****Vader: *cracks knuckles* Where can I find this MEC?  
****Me: … Actually, she's a guest reviewer so- NO! No trying to find her and choke her using the force! Honestly... Okay guys, enjoy the chapter (which is one of the longest yet to make up for the recent update delays) whilst I try to calm down the... _irritated_ ex Sith Lord...**

* * *

Jack snorted, trying to hold back a laugh. He couldn't help it. He'd head to the Pole as soon as he saw the lights, only to find that the 'emergency' was that North was in a shouting match with Pitch.  
The other guardians were half ready to burst into the fight, half trying not to laugh at the pair, and even Tooth, ever the mature one in the group, had resorted to stuffing her hand in her mouth to stifle her giggles.  
No to mention the fact that Pitch's nightmares were currently sauntering around, and one of them even gave what appeared to be a yawn... though Jack couldn't be certain. But come on, how could anyone be afraid of them? They were kinda cute if you thought about it... Kinda... In a dark evilly sorta way...  
And the subject of the argument? What got Jack actually laughing outright?  
Clicheness. Yup, they were arguing about how cliché Pitch was- in North's opinion- or how non cliche-in Pitch's-. Apparently, Pitch had come to start a fight, and had ended up being drawn into a verbal sparring match.  
They both span as he started to try and get his breath back, gasping from staying silent for so long, and Pitch gave him a deathly glare.  
"What do you find so amusing Frost?"  
"You... Man, you couldn't be more cliché if you tried! Evil, darkness... take over the world... chaos... shadows... evil horses that are actually kinda cute-"  
"CUTE!?" Pitch looked thunderous, and even the other guardians looked at him as though he had gone mad.  
"Oh..." Jack said, a little put out, "Can no-one else see it? Look... There little wavy manes... their... Oh, I dunno. I just think they're awesome... Yet evil... But cool... In a bad way... "  
Pitch turned to North.  
"Do you understand this?  
North shook his head.  
"For once we are in agreement..."  
Pitch snorted.  
"Not likely."  
Upon noticing the other guardians, and seeing Jack twirling his staff as he leant against one of the workbenches, he resorted to plan B.  
Disappearing.  
Jack gave a small disappointed sigh.  
"And there was me thinking this day might be fun after all... Ah well, things to do, places to go, people to see and snowy fun to spread... Bye guys!"  
With that, he flew off, leaving the others to share looks and decide, without the need for words, that maybe it was best not to ask.

Later that morning, Jack grinned as he dodged a snowball thrown by Jamie, before blinking as a trail of nightmare sand tried to twist around his ankle.  
He raised an eyebrow as dozens of nightmares surrounded him and the kids, who all looked at him with almost bored expressions, clearly telling him to get a move on so they could get back to the game. He grinned, almost lazily sending out a wave of blue that destroyed the nightmares, blinking slightly as he recovered from the momentary drain, before grabbing a snowball and aimlessly throwing it over his shoulder, hitting Claude on the head and reigniting the snow war, though none of them was aware of the yellow eyes that watched them for a second longer from the shadows before vanishing.  
Now Pitch had an idea to finally get rid of that damned winter guardian... But could it work? Only one way to find out...  
_

Jack was drifting across Asia, controlling a light snowfall here and there, when he found himself, once again, surrounded by nightmares.  
He glared at Pitch.  
"Three times in one day? Don't you have any thing better to do? Anyone else you could annoy?"  
Pitch smirked.  
"Not when I finally have a way of defeating you..."  
Jack sighed.  
"Have we not been over this? Like... A lot? And how many times have you failed?"  
"But this time, I see no guardians around... So what happens when I hit you at your weakest? Say... when you're recovering after each attack...?"  
Jack blinked. Ah... That _might_ be a bit of a problem- Too late.  
As one, dozens of nightmares attacked, and he eventually had no choice but to send out an explosion... But, even as he was recovering from it in those minute moments afterwards, Pitch sent another wave of nightmares at him, which he was too slow to dodge.  
He found himself falling, focusing on fighting off the nightmares that threatened, and keeping a firm hold on his staff, trusting the wind to carry him as he couldn't focus on flying and fighting at the same time as fighting unconsciousness.  
Huh... As instinct took over, Jack couldn't help but think that maybe he should have seen this coming... And prepared for it... It was only a slight moment after each blast, but it was, apparently, long enough for someone to get past his defences if they knew what to look for.  
Apparently, Pitch knew what to look for.  
Jack only had time to sigh about the irony of it all, when the nightmares suddenly branched off, and he turned just in time to shield his face from the oncoming roof.

Smashing through some vaguely familiar green tiles, he found himself slowing just enough for him to roll and avoid the worst effects of the fall, before he ended up colliding with a wall.  
Dust and pieces of green stone were still falling from the ceiling, and Jack suddenly felt tired.  
Typical, seeing as Tooth chose this moment to enter, wondering what on Moon had happened to her palace.  
"Jack!?"  
"Seems the wind... thought I needed... a short-cut..." He managed, adrenaline going down and starting to yawn. "And it seems... Pitch found... a _little _weakness..."  
"Pitch? Wait Jack! Come on Sweet-Tooth... stay awake..."  
Well, he gave himself credit for trying, but his body didn't seem to want to obey his mind, and he found himself drifting off.  
Tooth sighed as she grabbed one of North's orbs, which, thankfully, she had scooped up on hearing her palace being torn up-she was still wondering how on Moon the wind had managed to carry Jack through the magically enforced building- and threw it, shouting the Pole as her destination.  
Then, letting Phil, who jumped through as soon as he saw the pair, take Jack, she left one of the other fairies in charge, Baby Tooth having demanded to go with her before flying off with Jack and Phil, and ran to find North.  
_

North was frowning.  
"So Jack said Pitch found weakness?"  
"Which most likely explains why he ended up crashing through the roof and smashing into a wall. It must have been bad if the wind decided to take that kind of action."  
"Da... We will have to wait until he wakes to get full story though."

In fact, they had to wait a full three hours before Jack finally woke up.  
Baby Tooth told him that just before shooting off to fetch the rest of the guardians, Bunny and Sandy having arrived and been rather... _surprised_ to hear that someone had decided to make a new entrance into the Palace. Then again, they had argued, it _was _Jack they were talking about...  
Jack groaned as Baby Tooth left.  
_Three hours_? Wow... So _this_ was what happened if he never had time to recover after each time he blasted at stuff... He'd always wondered.  
Three hours? The very worried guardians, never having seen Jack unconscious for any longer than a couple of hours before, were even more worried when they found he was still slightly groggy. And it came as no surprise to any of them when Tooth ignored his insistence that he was fine, and pestered him until it got to the point where Baby Tooth had to tug her away.  
Jack frowned as they asked what had happened, and then about what the weakness was that he'd spoken about.  
"Well, it's something that no-one's picked up on before... Every time I do a powerful blast- like that time after I first became a guardian?- I have a quick drain. It normally only lasts a second or so, but Pitch managed to hit me with more nightmares at that exact moment, and I hadn't recovered enough to fight them off."  
"But what about first time? You were fully unconscious."  
"I was unused to doing it then, and my body wasn't expecting it. Its gotten so normal for me to just blast at nightmares on a regular basis now that my body seems to be used to it."  
Bunny raised an eyebrow.  
"Maybe, but apparently so's Pitch. And we can't have this happening every time you two run inta each other. Which, seein' as Pitch hates you, is gonna be regularly."

Jack narrowed his eyes at him.  
"If you make just _one _baby sitting remark-"  
"Woah, calm down mate, I wasn't gonna!"  
"But he's right..." Tooth butt in, and Jack sighed, crossing his arms as he flopped back against the headboard of the bed as the others discussed the best way to keep him out of trouble...  
_

Apparently, the best way was having Sandy follow him... Yippee... Jack thought, rolling his eyes as the golden guardian made attempts as being subtle about it.  
Which were shot to Moon as Jack got tired of it and formed a snowball, hitting Sandy directly in the face. Which earned him a half serious, half amused lecture about being mature. And it was all in charades and sign language, which made it even better.  
They actually became so involved in their mock argument that it was only Jack's quick reflexes and the wind which managed to alert him in time to duck a blast f nightmare sand.  
_Four_ times in _one _day? _Seriously_?This was a new record...  
Of course, the nightmares immediately head for Jack, who, of course and at Sandy's nod, simply created another blast. But, before Pitch could act on the momentary weakness, Sandy had struck down the nightmares that went to attack him, giving him long enough to recover.  
Pitch smirked as he looked between the two of them.  
"Ah, I see... So now the great Jack Frost needs a body guard?"  
Jack glared at him.  
"Nah. Its just no fun if there is no-one around to witness your inevitable humiliation."  
Pitch kept up the smirk, which was really starting to annoy Jack, for a few seconds longer, before laughing.  
"Well, they can't always be there Frost..."  
Then it was Sandy's turn to speak, in his own way. Not bothering with the mime, he simply spelt his message in the air.  
"Wanna Bet?"  
Pitch laughed again before vanishing, and Jack frowned.  
"He's got a point. I can't keep you guys away from your work all the time. And I can't stand being watched all the time. Maybe there's a way I can work the blasts so it takes less energy..." Jack broke off into mumbling, and Sandy sighed.  
There was absolutely no point in trying to pin Jack down...  
Jack stopped his musings, a short while later, to watch as Sandy started pouring out dreams again, becoming, as he always did, completely absorbed in the swirling patterns that were forming out of the golden sand.  
A couple of hours later, and Sandy finally stopped the flow of sand, leaning back and floating on a golden cloud, before signing to Jack.  
_Surely the best place to practice with your powers is the warren? Pitch would never go there.  
_Jack blinked._  
_"Huh. That's not a half bad idea..."  
Sandy huffed.  
_Of course it's not. No need to sound so surprised...  
_"Err... Oops?" Jack shot him a wide, innocent grin, which turned Sandy's frown into a smile- even though he had tried countless times to build up a similar resistance to the look as the others had without prevail- before starting to fly to the ground.  
_Where are you going?_  
"To take a short cut."  
_Mind if I tag along?  
_"Err... Sure? Because you can't possibly be worried about itch having hacked into the tunnel network..." Jack said this with a dead set straight face, and Sandy shrugged with just as serious an expression.  
_I just want to see Bunny for a bit...  
_Jack sighed as he opened a tunnel, letting Sandy jump down, before following.  
He grinned as he felt the welcome rush of air, that was the warren's way of saying hello, before instinctively landing in a crouch as he hit the ground.

Half an hour later and he was, not for the first time that week, trying to find a way of blasting at things without making himself feel drained. It turned out that the small blasts didn't weaken him, and it was only when he did the larger, stronger blasts, that it affected him. He rolled his eyes at the irony of it. All of this new power and what not, but he was still limited in what he could do... Or rather, by the recoil of what he could do.  
If only there was a way he could channel energy through himself in some way and not tire himself out or.. or maybe... It was all 'Maybe' and it was getting on his nerves.  
He started pacing to and fro, and Bunny, when he checked in on him, winced.  
He was pacing _on the ground_... He definitely needed a break...  
"Oi! Frostbite? Why dont'cha take five, eh?"  
"So I can be followed around again?" Jack asked, glaring at him, before cursing under his breath and pacing again. "Moon, I hate Pitch. Seriously..."  
"It took ya this long ta get ta that point?  
"Nope. Its just at this moment of time, I am particularly loathing him."  
"Ah..."  
"... I'm going to go and make a snowstorm somewhere. Maybe over the woods where that entrance to his damned lair is."  
"Uhuh... Mind if I tag along? That could be funny to watch..."  
Jack muttered something about _'over protective rabbits from space_' before shrugging. "Whatever."  
As a matter of fact, it _was_ rather fun.  
Especially when Jack froze the entrance over with a layer of ice just as a nightmare was about to exit, causing it to fly head-first into the rock hard surface.  
Bunny grinned, even as he grabbed Jack's hood.  
"That was a scout. Move it Frostbite!"  
They both opened a tunnel away from the place, and Jack was still grinning as he looked around to where Bunny had dragged them to. At which point he raised an eyebrow at him.  
"Why are we at the lake?"  
"First place I thought of where there isn't something or someone you can annoy."  
Instead of answering that, Jack formed a snowball and threw it at him, before flopping to the ground.  
"Hmm... I'm gonna have to get the snow out here soon..."  
"Doesn't it always snow out here anyway?"

"Yeah... But this time I can do it without annoying the other seasonals."  
"Oh... And there was me wanting ta rage at one of them again."  
"You kidding? I've only heard rumours abut what you and North said to Fall, but since then, no fall spirit but Flow has come anywhere near me."  
"You're welcome." Bunny said, with a grin, and Jack rolled his eyes.  
"And who's the mature one?"  
"Hey, I'm more mature than-" Bunny blinked, cutting himself off as he heard something, just as the wind ruffled Jack's hair, urgently, in warning.  
"Pitch." Jack near enough growled as he said it. "Seriously, five times in a day-"  
"It's evening-"  
"Don't interrupt me when I'm raging."  
"... Noted."  
"Five times in a day, and he still is not bored? Seriously!"

Pitch, of course, chose that moment to appear, smirking.  
Jack crossed his arms.  
"Seriously? Still smirking? Have you got nothing better to do?"  
"When I am so close to defeating you? Not at all Frost."  
He raised an arm ready to order the nightmares to attack, when he found himself choking from where an egg bomb exploded. Bunny, grinning at Jack's 'Not half bad' expression, turned his expression into a glare as he looked at Pitch.  
"Back off Pitch. You're not getting near him."  
"Oh really? Attack!" This was to dozens of nightmares that had formed behind them, which now rushed them.  
Instinct had Jack destroying them, and instead of spinning, he waited the minute fraction of a second for Bunny to jump back to back with him, as he had no doubt he would. In fact, Bunny had moved even before the taught had finished forming in Jack's head , and was now back to back with him.  
Jack smirked at Pitch, who had not had the chance to send his second wave of nightmares as Bunny moved.  
"Ya know, I've come to like being part of a team."  
Pitch found that he had nothing to say to that, and simply vanished, leaving Bunny to raise an eyebrow at Jack.  
"Did the infamous Jack Frost just count himself as part of a team?"  
"Haven't I been doing that ever since I joined you guys?"  
"I dunno... Have ya?"  
"Ever since you shrank to the size of an adorable yet normal bunny rabbit."  
"Huh. That long?"  
"Err... Okay, maybe a bit after that. But I just wanted to bring it up. Because it annoys you."  
"... Shut it Frosty."  
"Ouch. Snap..."

Back in the warren, Jack immediately got back to work on figuring out some way of keeping himself ready in a fight, and his mind drifted back to the storing power idea.  
He frowned as he riddled something out, then blinked, rapidly forming one of his ice crystals, before reaching out to it. Relaxing himself, he reached out towards it, and tentatively, at first, then with greater speed, he started pooling a small amount of energy into it, with the thought that, if he could take it back after he blasted something, he would not have the weakened state.  
He wasn't even sure if it could work like that, but it was worth a shot...  
But how much power could he store exactly? Maybe-  
The thought was cut off as the crystal exploded, throwing him backwards.  
He blinked as he sat up again, a few moments later, only to see that the explosion had iced over several of the surrounding trees. Huh... A lot apparently. Thing was, it really hadn't felt like all that much...  
A sharp, worried gust of wind blew through his hair, and a warm current of air from the warren- though he was surprised that it seemed more worried than annoyed- had him verbally assuring his surroundings that he was fine, before he shoved himself to his feet, just as Bunny arrived.  
The Pooka blinked, looking between the ice and Jack.  
"A'right. What did ya do this time, Frostbite?"  
"Tried to store energy in ice. Apparently, I stored too much. Hey, these could make awesome grenades!"  
"... I'm not even gonna ask."  
Not that Jack could have answered. He was too busy thinking about everything that exploding blocks of ice could entail. It eventually took a light whack across the head for him to break out of this train of thought, and shoot Bunny a disarming grin.  
"Yes? No? What did you want? Or Say?"  
"Well, I want North to admit Easter is better than Christmas. I want Pitch to go hide under a bed somewhere and never show his ugly mug again. I want ya to stop pranking me and turning my warren into a winter wonderland. And though none of that'll ever happen, it's all more likely than you being careful, so what is the point in even asking ya to be?"  
Jack blinked.  
"Err... Coconut."  
"What?  
"I had no idea what you just said, so I figured I'd be better of saying Coconut than just saying '_say wha'?'_"  
"... Just be more careful? Seriously, I hear an explosion, then the warren near enough goes into a full blown panic about ya. Which makes me beyond paranoid that you've actually gone and caused a rockfall or something equally likely to seriously hurt you."  
"Ah... Sorry? And err... Thanks? I think?"  
"Forget it... Anyhow, how did ya do that again?"  
Jack rolled his eyes at the not-at-all subtle change in conversation, and gave Bunny an example, this time prepared for the explosion, and managing to control it. Huh... And that didn't lave him feeling drained at all... maybe because he was in contact with all the power and not sending it all away from himself? In that case... Could he actually manipulate it to create a physical shield?

Sandy when he dropped by a few hours later, blinked as he saw Jack use blue energy from an explosion to create a shield that managed to hold for a couple of seconds before dissipating.  
Huh... The kid had clearly been at work...  
A conclusion which was supported by the iced trees that surrounded him.  
Bunny, however, was not all that bothered about it, caring more about the fact that Jack was finally doing something more on the defensive than the offensive.  
Clearly the winter spirit was taking this seriously, and Sandy and Bunny shared a look as he gained even more control over the explosions.  
At this rate, who knew where his limits were?  
It was only a bit later that Bunny decided that North and Tooth might actually want to see this and went to fetch them both, only to have Tooth fret over how dangerous it was. Which resulted in her getting a snowball over the head.  
Courtesy of Bunny.  
Much to Jack's delight.  
Of course, this devolved into a snowball fight, in which Jack- who had been staying out of it till a snowball from Tooth accidentally hit him- teamed up with Bunny and Sandy and subsequently buried the other two in snowdrifts.  
Tooth sighed as she dragged herself out, her and North sharing a look.  
"Twice in as many weeks..." She said, sighing, and making a solemn oath to never drag Jack into a snowball fight again... if he was on the opposing team that is.  
_

The following morning, Jack, who had ended up falling asleep in a tree in the warren, found himself waking up on a, surprisingly comfy, sofa.  
Yawning, he cleared his head and leapt up, stretching slightly.  
He let the wind lift him up, drifting outside, to find Bunny sketching.  
Silently floating over, keeping out of sight, he peeked over his shoulder and blinked at the little patterns, clearly for the next years batch of eggs, that had been sketched there.  
"Nice."  
Bunny, to his credit, simply blinked as Jack appeared, hovering in front of him, upside down, and grinned.  
"Thanks. You know you slept for a full twelve hours?"

Now it was Jack's turn to blink.  
"Twelve hours?!"  
"To be fair, you had five encounters with Pitch yesterday."  
"Yeah, but still... _Twelve hours_? Oh, and that sofa is surprisingly comfy."  
"Glad you thought so. Next time, try not to fall asleep in a tree?"  
"If you insist... Hey, reckon Pitch'll try again today?"  
"Most likely."  
"Good. I have a plan that I think will surprise you."  
"Really? I doubt that..."  
"Challenge accepted."  
"I hate it when ya say that." Bunny said, getting to his feet, and Jack grinned as he span himself upright.  
"hen don't say the word doubt..."  
Bunny smirked at that.  
"So if I said I doubt you could keep quiet and not speak at all till the next time we see Pitch...?"  
Jack glared at him.  
"That's just rude. But just to prove a point? I'm going to say challenge accepted."  
Bunny grinned.  
"This is looking to be a decent day... And it's not even noon yet."  
Jack glared at him, but didn't say anything, causing Bunny to grin even wider, before tapping a tunnel to the Pole.  
Jack followed suit, and was lucky enough to run into Sandy. After giving Bunny a shrug and grin , he started a sign conversation, to which Sandy ended up in a laughing fit.  
Jack rolled his eyes. Really? Who would have thought knock knock jokes in sign language could be so funny...?

To be fair, after a couple of hours, the novelty of the silence had worn off, and they were, all four of them, wondering when they had gotten so used to Jack's constant jokes and general mischievous voice... Because they were actually getting rather spooked by the lack of it.  
Jack, on the other hand, was actually enjoying himself. He'd never have guessed that being silent could be so fun...  
Even Bunny was getting spooked by the lack of mischief and joking and eventually got to the point where he hopped to his feet.  
"I'm bored. Who wants to go track down Pitch?"  
They all fell over themselves to agree, even Tooth who was normally against putting her 'ickle sweet tooth' in dangerous situations, and they all head out. Jack was still silent, but grinning wickedly at them as he floated along beside them.  
Bunny was so paranoid by it, that the fact that he was in the sleigh didn't bother him in the slightest, and he near enough jumped when Jack landed next to him, still grinning.

They were actually happy to land, after catching sight of some nightmare sand and following it, and come face to face with Pitch.  
North sighed in relief.  
"Oh, thank Moon. Now you can speak, Da?!"  
Jack grinned.  
"I suppose..."  
They all, to Pitch;s complete bemusement, sighed in relief, before facing Pitch.  
Bunny glared at him.  
"Why do ya have to be so hard ta find? Seriously! All you had to do was try ta attack the Pole! That was all ya had ta do!"  
Pitch simply stared at them all, before turning to Jack.  
"What?"  
"Apparently life sucks without me."  
"I happen to disagree."  
"How would you know?  
"Life was more pleasant without you."  
"Gee, thanks."  
"Oh, scrap the chat."  
A sudden burst of nighmare sand had Jack ducking, then he sighed.  
"Bunny?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Do me a favour?  
"What?"  
"Lend me your boomerang."  
Bunny blinked, but handed it over.  
"Err... Frostbite? What're ya-"  
Jack interrupted his question y throwing the boomerang, and hitting Pitch in the head, knocking him over backwards and sending him tumbling down a hill, where he finally came to a halt before glaring at Jack, deciding it wasn't worth the effort and vanishing in the shadows.  
Jack handed the boomerang back to an astounded Pooka.  
"Thanks."  
"... No Problem."  
"See? Told you my plan would surprise you. In future I'll just carry my slingshot or a bow around or something. Won't even have to face the nightmares..."  
The rest of them all blinked, sharing looks and asking themselves why they had never thought of that before, before Jack looked around and blinked, a surprised grin coming over his face.  
"Hey! This isn't too far from where Flow lives... You guys mind I I take off?"  
They all shared looks again, and Bunny literally shoved him.  
"Just go Frostbite. I'm going to try and sleep and get rid of the headache Ive got."  
"Aww, am I really that bad?  
" 're worse mate."  
"Perfect. Now I have to go collect on a bet I had with Shady."  
"What bet?"  
"That I could annoy you to the point where you had to go lie down."  
"... Just move it ya dill."  
"Already gone!"

Sure enough, with a leap he had vanished into the trees above them, and Bunny sighed  
"Well, I'm tunneling. See you guys later."  
As soon as he left, the others shared a look.  
"So much denial..." They said in unison, before Tooth took off, as did Sandy, and North leapt into his sleigh and taking leisurely ride back to the Pole, only to find that the elves had stuck themselves to each other with magically reinforced glue and were now rolling about the place in a huge ball.  
Just another average day in the life of the guardians then...

* * *

**Now, a line from a review given by Dark Inu Fan that made me smile... Hope it makes you laugh too!  
''_So, if they bury Jack up to his neck in a snow pile, does that make him Frost-y the snow-man?''_  
(Burn Jacky boy :D) Any of the rest of you have various names/jokes/ anything that might make for some interesting footnotes? I still need some nicknames for Ice Black... Lol :D I afraid that he still hasn't returned, so I have no doubt that I'm going to have to go and break both him and Luke- and No doubt Mr Solo- out from wherever they have got themselves locked up... *sigh*  
Vader: I could do that ya know...  
Me: Yeah, but you would terrify anyone you came across- Oohhh... Sure, go right ahead... Don't be too long though?  
Vader: Sure thing. *heads to the hangar bay and the beginnings of his journey to track the Millennium Falcon...*  
Me: Ah... Right... What to do now then? *muses on this for quite a while, until I suddenly get an idea* Ooh... *rubbing hands together gleefully* This is going to be great- *blinks as Vader suddenly appears, dragging Han with one hand, Ice Black with another, and with a very happy Luke strolling along behind him*  
Me: *realising they have been in one hell of a brawl* What on Moon Happened?!  
****Vader: Well, I tracked the Falcon to the Hutt's palace... then borrowed a couple of orbs from North and calibrated them to do universal jumps, then went in... Then started a fight, then subsequently won the fight, then opened another portal and came back.**

**Me:*Blinking* All in the space of... HALF AN HOUR!?  
Vader: Well... I am one of the most powerful beings in the Star Wars universe... and Luke was there too, so, to be fair... It really was not all that hard...  
Me: … Show-off... Hey Luke.  
Luke: Hey.  
Me: Han.  
Han: Raven...  
Me: How did you get captured this time?  
Han: Hey! It wasn't me this time! It was that moron over there. *gestures to Ice Black *  
Me: Ah... I can understand that... Oh, wait, I have the perfect way of getting Miss Chrissie-  
Vader: Nice one.  
Me: Yup, and it was from MEC, so do you forgive her?  
Vader: I suppose...  
Me: Right... Anyway, I have the perfect way of getting Chrissie Fur-Panini- courtsey of Rats x for that one- back for that.  
Ice Black: I do have a name you know...  
Pitch: Yeah, AND I _EXIST_!  
Me: I KNOW! YOU JUST GOT YOUR ASS WHUPPED 5 TIMES IN THE LAST CHAPTER! AND I CAN SHOUT TOO! SO YEAH!  
Pitch: *shuts up*  
Vader: *grins, looking fairly proud of me*  
Han and Luke: *look eager*  
Luke: What is this vengeance you speak of?  
Vader: Luke, vengeance is on the path to the Dark Side.  
Luke: Meh, if Raven can get you back from there, Im sure she can do the same with sweet innocent old me.  
Han: Ya hang around with me kid...  
Luke: … Point Taken... I'll be good!  
Me: *Grins * Men... Anyway, Vader? If you will?  
Vader: Gladly...*Hoists Ice Black up using the force, then spins him again*  
Me: That never gets old... Till the next chapter then guys! *gets back to thinking about my idea...***

* * *

**M-** Army of Ice Skating Elves really _does_ open a whole host of possibilities, doesn't it? Lol :D

**hacker44**- Glad to see you are enjoying the fic! Hopefully the updates aren't going too slowly for you :D Anyway, as soon as you get an account, let me know! And it was indeed nice to virtually meet you :D  
(Oh, and yup. Vader's been upgraded to second in command, though I don't think he's figured that out yet... And he's gotten use to handling me, so Im all good :D) Oh, one more thing... ''_- i only know how to do things three ways. The right way, the wrong way, and my way. Which is really the wrong way only faster!''_ Dude, so true :D

**MEC-** Huh... Then was it also fangirl heaven when he was dressed in Rambo style? Or Ninja style? Or... the leather jacket...? Lol :D And hint taken buddy :D Prank war should be in a couple of chapters time, and let me know if you have any prank ideas!  
Oh and Daddy Vader? *looks furtively around to make sure Vader isn't anywhere near* I know right!? *tiny spueal* Sooooooo cute! And sure, I'll give him another hug... I suppose... And lol, Miss Chrissie *sniggers* and nicely done with the pitchy wtch :D  
And you end the reviews fine :D Always makes me laugh, Lol :D And lets just call it a gut instinct, eh?


	47. So begins the War of the Guardians

**Me: *in official sounding voice* "Please keep your hands and feet inside the ride at all times. Do not stop to take pictures – 1 of 5 Airlines will not be responsible for any deaths or injuries that may occur from close proximity to the War Of The Guardians. Please enjoy the ride."  
Provided by Rubes99, and a disclaimer that I could not have put better myself... Oh, and please refrain from insulting Vader, as he is currently in a very bad mood with one Mr Han Solo for getting his son, Luke, addicted to a coruscantian version of Poker.  
Vader: I AM NOT IN A BAD MOOD! BUT THAT SLIMY, NO GOOD, CHEATING SWINDLER OF A NERFHERDER IS A BAD INFLUENCE!  
Me:*wincing* Okay, okay... I've said I'll talk to him,haven't I?  
Vader: TALK!? THAT IGNORANT BUFFOON WON'T LISTEN!  
Han: Yo, who irritated the big black hunk of leather?  
Me: *glares at Han* First, it was you and your goddamn gambling addiction. Second, don't insult him. I mean it... *warning glare*  
Han: *ignores the warning* Why, what ya gonna do Princess?  
Me: *scowls at the name, and turns to an already seething Vader* Did you know Han is dating your daughter? Asked her to marry him and everything...  
Vader: *freezes*  
Han:*gasping as though he thought I would never be evil enough to call his bluff and backing away*  
Vader: ...What? *deceptively calm*  
Me: *now in an evil mode* Yup. Oh, and she said yes. Can you imagine Leia marrying Solo? Wow... They could even have kids and-  
Vader: NO! *runs after Han, who's legged it from the room*  
Me: *flopping back into my comfy swivel chair and getting on with my plan* Ah, I love the scent of evil in the morning...  
Anyway, thanks to projecter, 0FrozenFire0, Rychan, Fireena, Akira-Wolfe, Death's Silent Approach, singing in the jukebox, Blooliar and 1captain obvious for the faves and/or follows!  
Enjoy the chapter guys! Oh, and a awful lot of the following pranks were provided by DARKLOVEFORFANFICTION, as well as loads of support in reviews, so a quick shout out to you DLFF! This one's for you!  
And several different pranks were inspired by MEC, a guest reviewer who should really get an account because I don't think FF would ever be the same again, Lol :D And another guest reviewer called isa who also gave me some ideas, so a shout out to you as well!  
*suddenly hears the whizzing of a lightsaber and blaster rounds being fired and face-palms* Men... I gotta go guys, enjoy the chapter! *runs out drawing my own light saber***

* * *

Jack landed at the Pole to find himself facing the other four guardians.  
Shady had played messenger that morning, and had carried to Jack the declaration of war...  
So, of course, he had immediately skipped off to see just what on Moon they thought they were doing. But, from their expressions, he assumed they were serious about this whole thing...  
Hmm... Ah well, he had to give them a chance at least...  
"One warning. Withdraw, and I won't end up turning your entire world upside down..."  
They all shook their heads, and Jack sighed.  
"Very well... You can't blame me for anything that happens next..."  
With that, he shot them a snappy salute, threw a smoke bomb to the floor and vanished, literally, in a puff of smoke.  
When it cleared, the guardians looked to North, who flexed his fingers.  
"Right. And so it begins..."

Jack, half an hour later, finally heard the guardians coming into earshot and looked back to admire his work. He then scribbled a quick note, before grabbing an orb and leaping through a portal to his place, watching as it closed a matter of seconds before the guardians rounded the corner...  
All four of them stared, astounded, at the room they had just entered.  
North's study was... well.  
Everything had been glued to the ceiling in the exact position it would have been on the floor... Heck, even the pencils had been glued in their pots.  
North grabbed the short note, and scanned it, reading out loud.

_I told you I would turn your world upside down..._

North clenched his jaw as he called several yeti's to sort it out, and spent the entire time glaring at them suspiciously... Jack had to have had help...  
Sandy, deciding that this was actually really funny, span himself upside down and sat himself in North's chair, grinning at the other three guardians, and making miniature dream sand elves to bounce around on the ceiling, which, as much as she tried not to, sent Tooth into a fit of giggling.  
Luckily for Phil, none of the guardians noticed the smirk he gave as he entered.  
Hmm, it felt good to be on the winning side for a change...  
As soon as he heard the tell tale sound of hissing, he quickly backed out, very casual like, and grinned as he thought of what was coming next.  
Bunny was quick to pick up on the hissing, and, before he could alert the guardians, the door had swung closed and some slightly visible gas started leaking into the room.  
As soon as it hit Sandy, who was closest to the cannisters, he started laughing, and Bunny cursed.  
"LAUGHING GAS!"  
But there was nothing they could do about it. And, by the time Phil had opened the door, the guardians were all rolling abut on the floor, laughing their heads off.  
It took nearly two hours for the effects to wear off properly, at which time they had already set about arming themselves.  
There was no way they were letting Jack get away with that...

Jack, at his own home, was doing the exact same thing.  
Now dressed in his ninja outfit, with a black zip-up hoody over the top for 'rolling up sleeves' purposes, his staff-wrapped firmly and cleanly in black cloth- on his back, some of his exploding shruikans in wrist and leg holders, twin, adjustable blasters in holsters on his thighs, a slingshot jammed through the holder on his belt, ammunition belts, comfortably wrapped around his waist, and a backpack-a twist of magic making it hold more than he had thought possible- filled with various things for pranks he had actually planned.  
Everything had been spray painted black, to blend in with his outfit, and he did the same to his hair before pulling his hood up and opening another portal to the Pole.  
He leapt through immediately clambering up to the higher beams across the ceiling in the huge workshop where he had appeared, and scanning the area.  
Thankfully the guardians, who had just entered he room, were more focused on the portal and had not seen him. He grinned as Tooth's voice echoed upwards in a very good imitation of an eerie tone.  
"He's heeeeeeere..."  
As one, the four of them- all armed to various degrees with blasters and weapons and all wearing varying amounts of armour- split up and dove behind four different pillars.  
Then North gave a whistle and Jack blinked, cursing, as Shady, Aspen, Clover, Lily and Gale appeared, likewise armed, and dove behind even more of the ridiculously well placed pillars around the room.  
He'd have thought they'd know better than this...  
He silently scribbled a quick note, screwed it up, and used his slingshot to fire it at Aspen, who picked it up, read it, and showed it to the others with a gulp.

_Will you never learn...?_

They all shared looks, and Jack gave a grudging nod of approval when they all nodded, before returning to their posts.  
Now, Jack would have loved to stay there and have an all out battle, but he had rooms to rig and pranks to set up and he did not have all day to do so...  
So, unfortunately, this would have to be a sneak attack... Or rather, a game of sneak out of the room without being noticed by the nine eagle eyed opponents.  
Thankful that he had arranged his gear so that it did not hamper his movements or make a sound, Jack took a chance and leapt to another beam.  
Then he waited... before leaping to another.  
Damn! He could swear Tooth caught sight of him then...  
True enough, she silently gestured to the beam he was pressed against, and he sighed as she cautiously floated up.  
But, if their attention was all on her, then surely it would be fairly easy to...  
He took his chance, and span himself around to the other side of the pillar he was leaning against, before- thankful that he had gripping gloves- quickly and easily climbing down  
He made sure to keep behind the pillar the entire time, and quickly reached the bottom, taking his chance as Tooth gave a disappointed sigh and flew back down, to dive behind a work-bench.  
Then he peered over the top, and mentally groaned as they all split up to search.  
Lily and Gale were heading towards him, and he grinned as he found a small niche under the window ledge.  
He had long since discovered that there was a small space under most windows-heck, he and Phil had worked on hollowing some of them out properly, with fake wall panels and everything, so he could fill a few with paint bombs and various other pranking ammunition- and quickly pulled the fake wall panel out, sliding inside, and pulling the panel back.  
Then he held his breath, listening for what was going on.  
Lily and Gale soon gave up searching, and Jack allowed himself a sigh.  
If only he was in the next window space along. They had pulled the floor out from underneath it to leave a space-for someone as small as Jack-to be able to crawl in the space between the floor and the ceiling of the next floor down.  
He had been surprised to find the Pole was built this way, but it did make for a sturdier structure and the Monastery had the same kind of thing...  
Then he hmmed... If he could get there, he wouldn't have to worry about sneaking out.  
He could simply shuffle under the floor and make his way towards the panelled ceiling of the storage room below, on the far side of the room.  
Then he could just dislodge a couple of the panels, drop through, set about preparing his traps and pranks, then saunter to the kitchen, grab a cookie and waltz out again...  
Hmm, that sounded good...  
He quietly shoved the false wall panel away again, rolled out, and peered around the room to see that they had grouped together and were now all heading this way.  
He rolled to the next window, slid inside the compartment, replaced the panel and sighed as he dislodged his bag, which had got caught on one of the beams beneath the floor.  
Why was there not such a thing as a shrink-ray or... something?  
He shoved it ahead of him as he crawled to the other side of the room, grinning as he heard the panic that started above him.

Bunny's ears twitched, and he suddenly jumped, before pressing his ear to the floor.  
Damn it, the damned ankle biter couldn't have... But he had...  
No! He was not allowed to admire the damn Winter Spirit!  
"North! He's under the floor!"  
North froze, as they all did as they took that in, before he exploded.  
"NO! HE CANNOT BE! HE CANNOT HAVE INFILTRATED VERY FOUNDATIONS OF POLE!"  
With that, he started running in random circles, even as Tooth and Sandy quickly leapt into the air and the others leapt onto tables and stools.  
Clover sighed.  
"Great. We're in a war against someone who has managed to infiltrate the very structure of one of the most secure complexes in the entire spirit world. Who's idea was this anyway?"  
As one, they all pointed to the, still running in random patterns, North.  
Then Bunny blinked.  
"Err... guys? I can't hear him any more..."  
Sure enough, everything had gone silent, and North face planted the workbench.  
"He could be anywhere on lower floor now..."  
The all shared looks, before racing for the door and the stairs.  
_

Jack grinned as he dropped into the store room.  
Right, first things first...  
He replaced the stocks of paint bombs with ones that would explode with colourful powder when someone tried to throw them. They looked identical, which was a bonus.  
He then ran to the kitchen and replaced all of the cooking spices with curry spices, and spiked all of the eggnog with extra hot tobasco sauce.  
Before grabbing a cookie and munching on it as he ran to the training room.  
Where he had been preparing for something like this for a while now.  
He took away one of the panels, where he and Phil had placed mechanisms to make it a trap door, and filled the resulting hole in the floor with a mixture of goo and slime-which he had kept in a nearby cupboard- before replacing the floor panel and double checking the trip wire.  
Then he ran to the room where the sleigh was and rigged buckets of glue and feathers to fall, before icing the floor over. He made it slippery, but thing, so they would not see it before they slipped over on it.  
With that, grinned and used the sleigh runway as his own personal slide, shooting into the air before zooming to the Tooth Palace.  
No doubt they would rig some traps at his own home, but not before he had turned theirs into he very epitome of a humiliating trap...

He covered the floor of the entrance hall, in the palace, with soapy water. Mainly because it was slippy as hell and turned anythign furry into a puff-ball...  
He pitied Bunny, that's all he could say.  
Then he rigged a few bucket over doorway traps-because who didn't like a classic?- before tying up a tarpaulin on the ceiling of Tooth's living/meeting room and filling the flat surface it created with glitter and confetti. This one was mainly focused on Clover and Lily, who hated anything ruining their hair... And glitter never came out.  
Then he stuffed a couple of air horns under some of the cushions on the chairs, which would go off as soon as someone sat on them, and stood back to admire his handiwork.  
Then, deciding he didn't want to do _too_ much damage, at the moment anyway, and shooting the fairies one of his heartbreakingly big puppy eye looks to get them to keep his presence there a secret, he flew to the Warren.

There, he rigged wire traps between the trees, placed trip wires next to the river-because, he reasoned, if they didn't come into play during this particuar war, they would eventually- and replaced the top layer of carrots in Bunny's stores with hollowed out ones that contained the hottest chilli's he had been able to get his hands on.  
He also took the precaution of mixing some of the remaining tobasco sauce into the water bottles, secure in the knowledge that anyone who was so desperate for water wouldn't be checking for the slightly odd colouring before-hand.  
Then he grinned, pulling out the last of the equipment he had for his prepared pranks, namely a variety of spray cans, and started to spray paint a_ nice_ Christmasy scene on the side of Bunny's actual home.  
Before he threw the spray paints back into the bag, opened up a tunnel and ditched the empty bag at his own place, before rigging safety measures over some of the doorways, like the one to the bedrooms for example, to make sure the guardians stayed where he wanted them to.  
To be fair, he was almost hoping they arrived soon for their first shoot out, because he had prepared the sparring hall specifically... Ropes, beams and the climbing frames were all over the place, as were small wooden walls that anyone could dive behind.  
He sighed as he lounged back, safe in the knowledge that things were now going to be just the way he liked them...  
Completely improvised and on the edge...

* * *

**Me: Okay, so this one was mainly prep work, and setting things up, but the next will be about how the Guardians and the spirits react to the traps and pranks. Then we'll have a cou****ple of battles, some more pranks... The guardians might even have a chance to prank Jack, you never know... *evil grin*****  
****But, as promised, this is going to be the most action and prank filled arc yet... ****  
*****waits for a few seconds, then blinks*****  
****Huh, so I guess**** it will just be **_**me**_** during this footnote. You'll be glad to know I stopped t****he boys little battle, and they'****re now deciding the outcome of their small... disagreement, in a mature, gr****own up and manly way... Namely, b****est out of five rock-paper-scissors. Or i****t was **_**meant**_** to be. Now it****'****s gone up to best o****ut of twenty five because they'****re ****ridiculously ****stubborn. Oh, and I have a hell of a plan for the next couple of footnotes! Mwuahahahahahahaha! But no spoilers now! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and will ****hopefully be updating soon! Guest review responses are below :D****  
****Vader: *from out of the room* Aha! I win! Again!****  
****Han: *also out of room* Best of 30!****  
****Vader: That's an even number, idiot.****  
****Han: … Best of 31.****  
****Me: *facepalm**** and eye-roll***** See ya guys!**

* * *

**hetalia -** "_Can you __let Jack use his puppy eyed look on Pitch?" _Mate, that is sheer, honest to Moon genius! Definitely gonna use it!

**Guest-** 'Epic' huh? Why thank you. *takes a modest bow* Thank you very much!

**MEC****-**Ah, good... I'll be sure to put Ninja Jack in soon for ya :D  
And I love the ice sculpture idea! And a tutu? Seriously, I love you guys... YOUR IDEAS ARE AWESOME! And a moustache... Teeheehee... And don't worry. I already have an idea for Sandy... *evil smirk*  
And thank you... thank you very much. It did feel nice to get one over on Crissie and Pitch...  
And wow, Vader forgave you? He actually listened? About the first time ever... *grumbles about ex Sith Lords and their authority complex's*  
And hmm... More randomness coming up!  
Till next time then, Mec!  
Rave XX

**RobynSmith****-** Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying! And I'm always up for giving him new skills... Any ideas for one a skill that could scare them out of their wits?  
And hmm... I'm pretty sure I've been hyper at about then before... Then again, I'm completely lost on the path of insanity, so its only to be expected, Lol :D  
And three nights? Wow... You kept with it that long? One of the greatest compliments I think this fic has ever received :D

Hope you get the chance to review on the later chapters!  
And thanks again for reading xx

**Candle dark**** –**Huh... *thinks that through* He does a that :D I'll be sure to put him in more often :D Actually, I have a few plans for our Pitchy Witch... *MWUAHAHAHAHAHA* *relaxes back to evil grin* Glad you're enjoying the fic, and until the next time my friend! *vanishes in a puff of smoke, only to peek around the back of my black swivel chair* Damn... I never get the timing right... Ah well, until the next time!

**M-** Thanks! Glad you think so! :D Hope you enjoy the next few updates as well! xx

**Julia- **Well, I hope you enjoy the movie! To tell you the truth, I've only seen it once myself... But I still had to write a fic, Lol :D Thanks so much, and I hope you continue to enjoy the fic! :D

**Hacker44-** Nope, I don't think the word normal can be applied I any way shape or form to anything related to me, Lol :D And rant all you like, it's making me smile like a loon :D Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

**isa-** Thanks for the ideas! And let's just hope the guardians are in the zone as well, so they aren't annihalated too badly, Lol :D


	48. War of the Guardians, Pranks and Plans

**Me: Okay guys, I'm just going to jump right in here. First things first, thanks to all guest reviewers from the last chapter! As usual, responses are at the end of the chapter :D Also, thanks to DeviaLyanMalfoi, (for the faves and follows of both me and the story) PJO 4 me and silverhuntress04 (for faving the story), and Adina Mizu (for following the story) Hope you enjoy the ride guys!  
And, seeing as I haven't for a while now... *HUGS* to everyone,  
(and I suppose I should do another random discalimer.. I don't own RotG, it's characters or locations and this is a non-profit fic, etc yada yada. We all know the drill :D )  
Anyway, I _was_ going to- Oh, *startled blink at the coincidence* never mind. Here they come now anyway...  
Jack: Why did you call me here Raven?  
Me: You'll see-  
Jack Sparrow: *popping into existence*Yeah, I've a mind to say the same thing. I was busy ransacking some poor sods off of Tortuga, when I gets wrenched from me rum. I didn't appreciate it, Raven. Savvy?  
Jack O'lantern: *appearing in a puf of smoke*Ha, tell me about it. Al I get is a letter saying 'get your ass over here' What are ya supposed to make of that?  
Jack Sparrow: Yeah... S'annoyin... Rum? *offers the bottle*  
Me: *grabs it and throws it into the air, shooting it* No getting drunk on me Sparrow.  
Jack Sparrow: But I-  
Jack Black: *appearing with a huge kung fu noise of a boom*Ooh, I came at the right time?  
Jackie Chan: *leaping in, Martial Artsy style* The time of violence?  
Me: *to you guys* Yup, that's right... IT'S A JACK CONVENTION! Who likes my plan? … Anyone?  
Jackie Chan: Well, I was only beating some guy up, so I had nothing better to do- Hey! You're the guy that voices he kung fu panda, Right?  
Jack (frostbite to you and me): Well, I think this could be fun-  
Jack O'lantern: Oh damn it, no more pranks?  
Jack Sparrow: Pranks?  
Me: *bites lip* Ah... Vader! Please tell me I hid the blasters!?  
Vader: *having just entered* Yes... Oh no... this is what you had planned? A convention of the Jacks...?  
Me: Yup... And there are more coming! I think it's time to 'Jack up' the entertainment... Haha... Hehe... Hehe... Heh... Anyone? … No? *pouts* Fine then... Ah well, enjoy the chapter guys! (Sorry that's it's not ridiculously in depth and descriptive, but... yeah... *sheepish shrug and disarming grin* Ya love me really :D)**

* * *

The ten of them, as they landed in a heap at the bottom of the stairs-the result of all rushing at once and promptly tripping and falling down in a huge tangled mess of limbs- decided to split up to cover more ground.  
Gale, Flow, Clover, Lily and Tooth went towards the study, Aspen, Shady and Bunny went to the training room and North, Sandy deciding to tag along, head to 'check out' the kitchen.  
Finding nothing out of the ordinary in the study, or the adjoining rooms, the four girls made their way back to the agreed meeting place, namely the store room, and arrived just in time to hear a loud yelp, followed by laughter, then more yelps...

Shady poked his head around the doorway, looking into the training room. Then Aspen did, a bit higher up, then Bunny followed suit. None of them saw anything strange, so Bunny slowly tiptoed forward. When nothing burst out to throw stuff at him, he sighed in relief.  
"Okay, I think it's clear-"  
"NO!" Aspen cried, slapping a hand over the Pooka's mouth, Shady having hastily given him a leg up to enable him to do so. "Don't jinx it!"  
Bunny rolled his eyes, peeling the fingers away.  
"Look, he might be good, but he can't prepare for everything, and he can't booby-trap every room."  
The other two shared dark looks, and Bunny sighed, pulling away...  
And promptly yelping loudly as he fell through a hole in the floor, where there had previously been a panel.  
The others froze, then burst out laughing as the Pooka tied to clamber back out, completely covered in slippery slime and good, in a lovely toxic green colour.  
Their laughter was replaced by yelps as Bunny pulled them both in too, and they both spluttered as they glared at him.  
"Remind me why we chose to be on their team?" Shady said, and Aspen sighed.  
"Because we're idiots and thought we had a chance of winning."  
"We still have a chance of winning-" Bunny cut off at the pointed looks, before rolling his eyes. "Bleedin' pessimists..."  
They eventually managed to get themselves out of the hole in the floor, and Bunny glared as the panel slid back into place.  
"Damn Frostbite... How the hell could he manage to do all this?"  
The others, in unison, replied.  
"He's Jack Frost."  
They were just leaving to head back to the meeting place when they heard a huge yell, followed by a constant jumble of Russian... Then an even louder series of yells. None of them could speak the language, but they got the gist...

North sighed as he heard the yelps, and shook his head, shrugging at Sandy, who rolled his eyes and took guard position outside the door in case of attack.  
Great... The Pole had become a huge bloody trap... Ah well, apparently the youngest guardian was not in the kitchen.  
He absently grabbed a few cookies and munched on them, not paying much attention to the taste... until the spice kicked in, all in one sudden explosion.  
He yelped, starting to try and fan his mouth-which only made things worse- before garbling a string of Russian curses as he threw open the fridge and grabbed a bottle of eggnog, downing it in a few mouthfuls... Only to yelp louder as it made everything a hundred times worse.  
He ended up throwing his head under a tap and letting water pour into his mouth that way, Sandy in the midst of a silent laughing fit the entire time.  
It eventually cooled enough for him to be able to leave the haven of the sink, and he glared at everything and nothing as he made his way to the meeting area... Only to see three bright green dripping males, four giggling females and a dancing elf.  
"Right. This time, he has gone too far. HE SPIKED THE COOKIES!"  
The dancing elf skipped off as Bunny spoke up, still trying, in vain, to wipe away the green sludge that was stuck in his fur.  
"With what mate?"  
"Ridiculously hot spices... Then he put, what I am assuming is, Tobasco sauce in eggnog."  
Tooth tried, valiantly, to hide her giggle, but it burst out anyway.  
At the evil looks she was given, she held up her hands defensively.  
"Sorry, sorry... Look, let's just stock up on paint bombs, go to his place, and give him hell?"  
They all exchanged looks, before shrugging and heading into the store room, each picking up several of the 'paint bombs'.  
Bunny threw one up in the air, catching it again, and sighing.  
"You really want to risk attacking on his home turf...?"  
North shrugged.  
"Luck favours the brave..."  
"I'm not so sure that that's the saying-"  
"Pish Pash-"  
"Neither is that- Oi!"  
Bunny ducked as North went to throw a pint bomb at him, only for it to explode into an explosion of red powder.  
The others all shared looks, before looking at the paint bombs.  
Or rather, the ruse.  
They all heaved a sigh, in unison, as North coughed, knocking into Flow, who dropped the ones she was holding. They fell in almost slow motion... before they all promptly exploded, making everyone drop the ones they were holding, which also exploded, and Shady bumped into the box, sending the rest of them crashing to the floor...  
By the time they had fought their way out of the store room, tripping each other up all the way, they were all covered in multi-coloured powder, and they all tiredly sank down against the wall.  
And to think they had only been at it for an hour or so...  
Clothes, feathers and fur were all coated in a think layer of the stuff, and North scowled as he realised what it was.  
"Will not wash out, but will stay for several hours before vanishing, unless we have specific water and powder combination, which Jack will no doubt have taken hostage. Meanwhile, we leave trail of dust wherever we go..."  
They all sighed, until Clover perked up.  
"Everywhere? Then I say we go and make a mess at Jacks..."  
They all exchanged looks, before Tooth gave Clover a high five.  
"Brilliant..."  
They took a few minutes to double check their blasters and various other weapons, before heading for the sleigh, their thinking being that Jack would be expecting a portal...

They had just stepped through the door when Flow uttered a loud groan and an apology...  
They all turned just in time to see her foot stuck under a tripwire, before looking up to see a wave of glue and feathers falling towards them...  
Clover growled as she realised what a mess her hair was in, before realising that t was the least of her problems...  
They all looked like lumpy, powdery chickens for Moon's sake...  
Though, she had to admit, Bunny looked ridiculously funny... And Tooth's wings actually suited the whole chicken look.  
It took them several moments to wipe most of it off, but they were still left with patches of glue and feathers everywhere, and Shady was slowly head-butting the wooden post.  
"Never go against Jack... In A Prank War... Every time... Never listen to my own... Damned advice... Bloody Guardians..."  
Clover held her hand up as the others went to cheer him up, making _'you don't want to go there'_ gestures and, a few seconds later, he turned to North.  
"You've doomed us all..."  
"So much Pessimism!"  
"I'm being realistic... WE'RE DOOMED!"  
"I am sure that we will be fine-"  
"Then go and walk to your sleigh. We'll watch."  
The others all grinned at North, making shooing motions, and he got a determined look.  
He took a dramatic step forward... and promptly fell over on the ice that was there, sliding halfway across the floor.  
The others burst out laughing, even as Aspen started clearing it for them to walk across.  
Shady nodded, tying a scrap of black fabric around his forehead.  
"Right. I may be on the wrong side in this war, but I'll be damned if we're going down that easy. ASPEN! Give me that blaster."  
Aspen threw it to him, grinning at the guardians.  
"Shady's going into war mode. Hey, we might be in with a chance now..."  
The guardians all shared looks, before nodding, making a silent decision that they were sure they would regret... Eventually... Maybe... Possibly... Not?

Sandy immediately morphed a suit of armour with dream sand, North pressed a switch and a breast plate, arm and leg braces and shoulder pads folded out from his belt creating his own armour, Bunny pulled a cord on his belt and the leather split, revealing a row of fold out boomerangs which he took out and strapped to his waist and Tooth flicked her wings, her feathers flipping to a darker colour as a set of delicate armour-which was clearly stronger that it looked- folded itself out.  
Shady gave them an approving look.  
"That's more like it. It's better to start taking this seriously earlier rather than later... Spirits! Prepare for battle!"  
Gale grinned, and she brushed aside the leaves on her outfit to reveal that she was in fact wearing leather bracers and... chainmail? With a leather belt. Flow and Clover caught the small packages she threw them, and they rolled out an all in one, flexible, armour outfit, and Aspen got a load of Ice together, morphing it into his own armour.  
Shady flexed his fingers, before spinning the blaster around and blasting three times, each time hitting a hidden trip wire.  
The guardians all stared, completely bemused...  
Why did they get the feeling that the spirits had done this before?  
"Rule one, always keep your eyes peeled. Rule two, _never _do the unexpected. Jack lives for that... Rule three, never rest. If you feel safe? Run. Rule four, never antagonise Jack Frost. I mean never. And rule five? Never go first. Off you go North."  
North glared at the spirit, but cautiously made his way across the floor. He sighed as he managed to reach the sleigh, and was just starting to feel secure when a stream of glitter-glue exploded at him.  
He sighed as he managed to block the small blaster that had clearly been set up with a weight distribution system.  
Shady sighed as he turned to the others, throwing Aspen his blaster back and taking back his wooden staff.  
"Again, Rule number three. Until there is a truce or a surrender, you are never safe. Now are you starting to see what you've started?"  
Sandy, Tooth and Bunny sighed, nodding, before sharing small grins, causing sighs amongst the spirits.  
It appeared Jack Frost had had far too much of an influence on the guardians... And it was looking to become the cause of one of the greatest battles the spirit world had ever seen...  
_

They managed to get into the sleigh without further incident, and it wasn't long before they were landing in the huge runway in the monastery.  
They all leapt out, immediately running for cover, North even doing a combat roll behind the small wooden table, and froze for a few seconds until Shady motioned them forwards.  
"Okay, go!"  
They slowly and cautiously made their way up, using basic, altered military tactics, such as hiding in doorways, as they did so, before they finally burst into the training room, throwing themselves behind various pillars and tables.  
Then they all groaned as they spotted Jack, grinning at them from a rafter and with a very familiar looking can in his hand.  
"Hey guys… Ya look a bit… well… messy."  
"Can it Frostbite…" Bunny called, from behind his pillar, before glaring at the drink.  
"Please tell me that it isn't-"  
"Caffeine? Yep. An aptly named No-Fear energy drink. Oh, hey Shady, you gone all War Commander mode on us?"  
"We're against you. What do you expect, Jackie boy?" This was Bunny and Shady winced, throwing himself behind one of the small wooden shields Jack had arranged over the room, shouting for everyone to get down.  
"Jackie boy?" Jack shot the Pooka an evil grin. "Bad move Plushie…"  
With that, he swung down into the shadows and vanished…

Shady was quick to call out again.  
"Clover! Gale! Flow! Aspen! Lily! Serpentine manoeuvre and fire at will!"  
The guardians all shared looks, before shrugging and getting their own weapons ready to fire.  
Suddenly, Flow blasted at a flicker of movement, only to see that it had been a cardboard cut-out of Jack, with the words 'Nice try…' written on them.  
A flurry of movement had everyone else blasting, and it was a few seconds before they realised that they were firing at more decoys.  
They all stopped, when one of the Jack's suddenly started firing, catching North and Gale with several blasts of paint.  
Everyone started firing, only to find that, once again, Jack had vanished.  
Damn it, Shady thought, as he crept forward, Jack had gotten, if it was possible, even better…  
A sudden shifting behind him had him spinning, only to duck a blast from Jack, who had crept behind him, and roll to the floor, coming up firing.  
He grinned as he managed to catch Jack's jacket with the red paint in his blaster..  
That should make him a little easier to spot…  
But that was the only piece of luck they had during this shoot-out.  
Jack would leap in, fire, then vanish into the shadows again-much to Shady's annoyance, as the damned spirit was so quick he couldn't pinpoint him- and the nine of them slowly, but surely, ended up becoming walking rainbows.  
Not only were they getting blasted by Jack, but Jack would often leap between two of them, making them shoot each other, before laughing, blasting at them, and vanishing yet again.  
They made a valiant effort, Aspen, Clover, Flow and Tooth even using the climbing frames and getting off some very impressively aimed shots which only narrowly missed, but were soon considering just giving Jack the win for this one.  
It was only when Jack created a few ice sculptures, however, that started throwing snowballs at them, that North called a retreat.  
"GET BACK! THROUGH THE PORTAL!"  
Bunny blinked.  
"Mate, the Pole could still have traps!"  
"I HAVE OPENED IT TO BURROW."  
"Oh gee, thanks…"  
He, didn't, however, hesitate or argue before leaping through and rolled out of the way as Flow and Gale followed, Shady yelling for them to close it and he'd shadow jump.  
North nodded, slamming the portal closed, and they all waited, with baited breath, for Shady to arrive.

Shady winced as Jack gave a cheerful laugh.  
"Hey, just like old times, huh?"  
Aside from the optimism."  
"Meh, it'll fade." Shady grinned as he caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye, and span, firing.  
Jack yelped as he leapt aside, firing at Shady, and the two exchanged a flurry of blasts before Shady finally made it to a pool of shadows, shot a snappy salute to Jack, and vanished.  
Jack grinned as the shadow spirit vanished.  
Now then, how many of the burrow traps would they trigger? Only one way to find out…  
He tapped a tunnel, and leapt out, grinning as he leapt into the trees and, using the branches, ran and flipped his way towards the rest of them, keen to keep track of what area's he could use for traps later… Seeing as they were bound to miss a few, it would be nice to make use of them.

Bunny's ears twitched as he felt something flare in the warren, but brushed it away. Jack wouldn't be crazy enough to follow them here…  
And it was wiped from his mind as Shady came tumbling from the trees, grinning.  
"Well, that went well…"  
They all set off, heading to Bunny's home.  
A sudden yelp from Tooth, who was in front, preceded her getting hoisted upside down, dangling from one ankle, which a rope was wrapped around.  
"Oldest trick in the book..." Bunny sighed, letting her down. "Okay, eyes to the ground…"  
They all listened, watching for more tripwires… Which was why they didn't noticed the wires strung between branches.  
Lily ended up triggering one just as North did the same, both of them ending up with buckets of paint emptying over their heads, and both backed away, knocking into Gale and Aspen who were knocked backwards and ended up triggering two more of the foot snares.  
North, as the two were helped down, belatedly -in the others' opinions-decided to just take a short-cut and opened a portal to just outside Bunny's home.

The Pooka sighed as they all gasped-being ahead of him- and he hurried through the portal, leaping forward to see what the damned Frostbite had- Oh Moon… He… He…  
_He'd painted a Christmas scene on his home!_ _With little arctic bunnies and everything!_  
"JACKSON OVERLAND FROST! WHEN I FIND YOU YOUR LIFE WON'T BE WORTH LIVING YOU... YOU… ARGGGHHHHH!"  
With that, he started pacing, muttering and clearly plotting something, and shot the others a determined look.  
"I have had a plan for a while now, but needed help. You guys in?"  
They all nodded, and he ran to the store room, coming out with a huge sheet of paper.  
"Okay, here's what we're going to do…"  
Jack, in the interests of fair play, decided to just hang back and not take a peek, though he did overhear something about Burgess…  
He lounged about for a bit, before he perked up as they all head over to the store room.  
Bunny absently grabbed a carrot, biting into it as he reached for more paint bottles to empty into their-now empty- blasters.  
He had barely swallowed before the heat kicked in, and he yelped, running in circles and fanning his mouth.  
He grabbed a couple of carrots from a different box, thanks to the heat induced illusion he was in deluding him into thinking that Jack would only have spiked one barrel.  
He quickly realised his mistake as the three carrots he munched on also had chilli's in them.  
North, both sympathetic and panicking, grabbed a bottle of water and Bunny snatched it, downing it in a couple of mouthfuls. He was quiet for a second or two until…  
"TOBASCO SAUCE!"  
He ran from the store room, running in circles and yelling about the heat, when they all heard laughter from the trees.  
They all yelled, diving behind trees, until he spoke up.  
"Huh... Too hot for you Plushie? Then let me help you cool down…"  
With that. A heavy snow started falling, and the ground around them was covered with a thick layer of the white powder within minutes.  
They all groaned as Jack leapt to the ground, scooping snow up and making it into a perfect snowball, before tossing it into the air and catching it a few times. It was only a minute fraction of a second before they were doing the same themselves, ignoring Bunny who had simply dove into the snow and was now busy eating it to get rid of the effects of the chilli's.  
By the time he rolled back up, there was a full on snowball fight going on around him.  
_

Jack had formed several snowmen, and animated them to throw snowballs at a steady rhythm, the others were working to destroy the snowmen, whilst avoiding Jack's uncanny aim and Bunny decided what the hell, grabbed his slingshot and started firing at the Winter spirit.  
Yeah, Jack wasn't the only good shot here… Though they had to shout a grudging thanks to him when he started throwing balloons filled with the mixture that dissolved the multi-coloured powder that they were still plastered with. For as he had said, he was 'helping them out'.  
Shady and Aspen were likewise very good shots, and they wordlessly formed a plan. Whilst the three of them targeted Jack and made sure he couldn't focus on the others, the others all worked towards getting rid of the snowmen.  
As the last one crumbled, Jack grinned, sending a final shot towards Bunny and hitting him in the face, before vanishing into the trees.  
After a few minutes, it appeared that he had decided to let them have this one and they all relaxed a tiny amount.  
After a few seconds when they all got their breath back, Tooth spoke up.  
"Okay, we need somewhere to rest and clear up. The Pole is too risky, and staying here is clearly not an option. I'm willing to risk the palace, if you guys are?"  
Knowing they would have to go there eventually, they all voted for getting it over and done with, letting North open a portal to the main entrance to the palace.  
Tooth sighed as she flew forwards a little. Now it was her turn...

Hovering as she was, however, she didn't fall victim to the slippery floor and motioned the others inside... Just in time to realise her mistake.  
She was too late to shout a warning, however, and the seven members of their little party that were walking ended up falling over themselves and, in their attempts to stand upright, finally came to a halt in a tangled mess in the centre of the room.  
It was nearly ten slippery, yelp-filled and embarrassing minutes later before Tooth and Sandy managed to help them manoeuvre to the other end of the hall, and they finally managed to stand on their own two feet.  
Bunny's fur had started to dry, with the mixture in it, and he was now starting to look like a full on poof-ball.  
The girls had hard times not giggling, and even the guys were trying hard not to let their grins show.  
Needless to say that, by the time they had navigated the rigged doorways,got splattered and covered in paint, fallen over tripwires which set off yet more buckets full of some form of colourful and irritating concoction and finally entered the meeting room, they were all ready to clean themselves up and take a nap.

No such luck.  
They had no sooner entered the room when the huge tarpaulin fell-triggered by pressure sensors in the doorway, and they were all buried beneath glitter confetti.  
There were squeals from Flow and Clover as they realised what a mess their air was in, and Bunny scowled as confetti and glitter stuck to the paint and everything else already coating his fur.  
It would take ages to get this off...  
The others looked likewise ridiculous and tired, and by the time they had fought their way free of the huge confetti pile in the middle of the room, they simply head off and got themselves cleared up, the six spirits muttering about _'the older generation having something to prove' _and _'maybe not siding with the losing side in future'.  
_The guardians however, even though Bunnymund took almost three hours to fully get everything out of his fur, were actually enjoying themselves immensely, though they grudgingly realised that Jack was likely as energetic as ever, even as they were exhausted.  
They had just sat down, to get some rest, when everyone leapt into the air, yelling or squealing or exploding into a blast of golden sand sparks, before landing in heaps on the floor, as the loud sound of air horns echoed through the palace.  
They would check every chair they sat on for some years after that, simply for Paranoia's sake...  
Now, that was one spirit who was really rather amused by the whole affair, though she would never admit it...  
_

The following morning, they all grouped together, double checking their roles in Bunny''s plan, and deciding on an ideal place for a secret base. They couldn't risk their homes. It was too obvious.  
So, when North hit upon the perfect location, they eagerly snapped up the opportunity and set about moving...  
Now it was time for them to go on the offensive...  
But, Shady thought as they moved everything, That left Jack on the defensive... And he was never more dangerous and sly and smart and ridiculously uncanny than when he was completely improvising...  
Ah well, they'd see... For now, what _was_ the best way to convince the Burgess kids that they really should not side with their idol in this particular battle?

* * *

**Me: Okay guys... I would... you know, explore the whole Jack Convention thing more? But most of them (mainly background characters in Moon knows what films and books and what-not) are currently involved in a game of exploding snap, which Vader managed to swipe from Ron Weasley. Not only that but Sparrow is drunk and is dancing with a giant teddy bear that he's named Jackie Sparrow Jr, Jackie Chan and Jack Black are in an arm wrestle, Jack (from Jack the Giant Slayer) is in an argument about fairy tales with the Jack from Jack and Jill, Jack O'lantern and Jack Frost are currently discussing the politics of the spirit world, and the Jack of hearts, from Alice in Wonderland, is trying to steal the tarts... I mean cookies! Gah, this thing is wearing my nerves down! Seriously, I think I'm just going to invite the Looney Tunes Gang over for a party and have some fun... So, till the next chapter, (where I am sure the party will spill into the fore-note... ;D) Have fun, Be good and Don't blow anything up! WAIT! JACK SPARROW! THAT MEANS YOU TOO-  
*Huge explosion of gunpowder*  
Vader: Too late...  
Me: … You dare say I told you so and I'll... I'll...  
Vader: Fine! Sheesh... But I informed you thusly. I _so_ informed you thusly.  
Me: … *glares*  
Vader: *shuts up and quickly busies himself welcoming a Jack in a Box *  
Me: Yeah... This is starting to get strange, so I'm definitely inviting Bugs, Daffy and the others over. See ya guys!**

* * *

Guest Review Responses (Up till I uploaded this chapter)

**RobynSmith** – Interesting idea... Not sure whether It would work in the context of the fic at the moment, but I'll see :D Don't hesitate to let me know if you think of any more! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D

**ThatRandomGuest**** –** Haha, yeah... But when he's in the whole '_Gah! I need to cool the heat!'_ phase, I'm assuming he would just forget about it, Lol :D Glad you enjoyed the chapter, and I hope you enjoyed this one as well!

**Guest****-** Living Ice Sculpture of himself? I like the idea... Not sure about him being harsh enough to make them think they'd shattered him into a million pieces, but I really like the idea! Cheers for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

**Guest:** Awesome, huh? Why thank you! Thank you very much! *elaborate bow* Hope you thought this chapter just as enjoyable!


	49. War of the Guardians, Dude, not the Hair

**Me: Okay guys, first of all, I just wanted to say that rats xp, a constant reviewer and supporter of this story, has just started his own RotG story (as part of a collab) called 'Secrets'. It had me giggling and is definitely worth a read if any of you feel like heading over to his page? Keep spreading the RotG love around!  
Anyway, the pranks are still coming in, and I just wanted to say thanks to Phoenixtear101, who gave me some pretty awesome ideas, as well as any guest reviewers who have sent in a couple, and everyone who's pranks have already been used! It's amazing how similar some of the requests are, and how many of them I was already planning variations of... I guess we're all just evil, Lol :D I approve!  
And, due to several requests, I am going to try and attempt my cookie recipe for myself soon (as I haven't yet), so I will let you know if my new twists actually work out :D If they do, I'll be sure to post the recipe at the foot of a chapter :D So, I think that that's all of-  
Jack Sparrow: Ooh, that sounded official mate.  
Me: Oh dear Moon, yes it was official sounding. There was important stuff in there- No! JACK-JACK! PUT DOWN THE BLASTER! VADER! THE BABY HAS THE BLASTER!  
Vader: ON IT! AND JUST SAYING THAT-  
Me: You say one more variation of I told you so, and I swear I'll lock you in a room with Han for 24 hours straight!  
Vader: … JACK-JACK! NOT THE BLASTER! DAFFY! STOP HIM FROM-  
Everyone in the room: *winces as the baby blasts at Wil-e-coyote, who ends up as a trickle of black ash*  
Me: *Sigh* It's a good thing toons just keep coming back, eh?  
Jack Harkness: Tell me about it-  
Me: Hey, you keep coming back too! Honestly, I thought I got rid of you fifty years into the past when we decided to have shoot out in that Texan Bar!  
Jack Harkness: Nah, I just leapt to the modern day, grabbed the Tardis, went to the end of the world with the doc and Martha, then decided to explore ancient Rome for a while-  
Me: Oh, so it **_**was**_** you I shot with a Javelin!  
Jack Harkness: That was **_**you!?**_**  
Me: Yup. Anyway, I thought you didn't like these random things I keep doing? With all the space time anomalies and different universes and all that...  
Jack Harkness: Meh. Hey, is that Jack Sparrow? Yo! Sparrow!  
Jack Sparrow: Harky boy!  
Me: *as they do a complicated greeting handshake* I don't even want to know... Ah, hey Reacher.  
Jack Reacher: Hey... Oh, are they playing exploding snap?  
Me: Yep... Oh go on then, go swindle them out of all their money...  
Jack Reacher: Awesome! *runs over*  
Bugs: Meh... *munches on Carrrot* What's up Rave?  
Me: Oh, hey Bugs. I'm good, just a little frantic... I'm kinda worried that the Jack Atlas, yu know, from the Yu-Gi-Oh universe? is going to start betting with those damned Yu-Gi-Oh cards that he got Frostbit so interested it. Ah well, I've had wore problems. How Duck season vs Rabbit Season going?  
Bugs: Not too bad. I got Marvin the Martian on my side, though he don't know it.  
Me: Nice one! *high fives Bugs* Oh, damnit... *sigh* Jackie Chan has got into a fihgt with Jack Reacher and Jack Sparrow... OI! SPARROW! NO MUSKETS! NOW STOP THAT FIGH OR I'LL DORT IT MYSELF!  
Everyone: *winces  
Men involved: *swiftly back up, revealing a running figure behind them*  
Me: Oh, damnit! JACK OF HEARTS! GIVE BACK THOSE TARTS!  
Vader: Smooth rhymes.  
Me: Shut it, ya muppet.  
Vader: There too.  
Me: Oh dear Moon, I'm glad we're near toons. *as Bugs and Daffy start getting into a verbal sparring match on the merits of carrots, thus distracting everyone from my completely ****subconscious rhyming*  
Vader: Yeah, please stop the rhyming. It's... creepy.  
Yoda: Creepy I shall show you creepy young Skywalker!  
Me: *gasp and facepalm, befor ehitting the alert, frantically* EVERYONE! YODA'S BACK!  
Everyone: *freezes, then starts running about in a panic, before diving behind either tables, Bugs Bunny, My Evil Overlord chair and Porky Pig, who throws up a tray in front of his face*  
Me: I... err... *to you guys* Erm... Nothing to see here! You just enjoy the chapter!  
Porky Pig: Yup, Th-th-that's all Folks-  
Me: … Right. What he said.**

* * *

The spirits all grinned as they finished moving everything to their new base of operations.  
The small, secluded old warehouse, which Bunny had used to use for storing eggs outside the warren just in case of emergency-but which he, ironically, hadn't used in years- may have been small compared to most places they could have gone, but it was large enough for what they needed, as well as being secluded and having the added bonus that Jack didn't know it existed.  
From their, they decided that it was time to put their plan into action...  
It was simple.  
They would get the kids to distract Jack-knowing he was too soft-hearted to do anything much against them- and then they would get him covered in the magic that North had formulated for this very reason, upon Bunny's request, several months ago. It would turn Jack's snow bright blue for over a week...  
True, he would retaliate, but surely he couldn't do anything too ridiculous... right?  
That was what they were hoping anyway, and Tooth and the girls had even got together a small plan of their own... Namely involving hair dye in the most obnoxious colour they had been able to find.  
One problem... They had to get he kids to agree to help them...  
But they had a plan. If they could get Sophie on their side, then the others would follow under the will of her ridiculous puppy dog eye look, clearly inherited from Jack.  
And how were they going to convince her? Well... Lets just say that some of the glitter on Bunny's ears had refused to wash off and they were going to make the most of it.

Bunny sighed as he hoisted the-not so small as she used to be- Sophie onto his shoulders.  
"Hey, ya little ankle bita, how ya doing?"  
"You have glitter ears! They aren't fluffy no more..." She pouted and Bunny sighed, dramatically.  
"Yeah, Frostbite pulled a prank on me. It's a shame we can't get him back but-"  
"I'll help!"  
"I knew ya would kiddo, but we need the other's too... Reckon ya can convince them?"  
The group of kids stood in a semi-circle, half an hour later, said yes, she could, and North grinned as he stepped forward.  
"Okay troops, here is the plan."

When Jack dropped into the clearing a little over an hour later, he shot them a look which clearly said_ 'I know what you're doing'_. Shame then, that it was too late for their guilt to get the better of the as Jack was bombarded with various streams of magical goo, from the guardians and spirits in the trees.  
The children joined in, all aside from Jamie who snook off on a mission, pelting snowballs around-though a suspicious amount of them hit the guardians and the spirits instead of Jack- but eventually stopped and gasped as the snow they were throwing, which Jack had been keeping topped up, turned blue.  
Cupcake also gasped as they took in Jack, who was running a hand through his hair and dragging in front of his eyes in disbelief...  
It was bright green. Like neon green. Like toxic neon green...  
Jack was frozen for a few seconds, until he cricked his neck, flexed his fingers and rolled his sleeves up, wincing slightly at the fact that his favourite jacket was now splattered with paint.  
Everyone in the clearing groaned, especially the guardians and the spirits who the vengeance would be directed against- as Jack turned with an evil smirk on his face.  
Shady had hoped he would never see that face again.  
Then Jack shot a look to Jamie.  
Jamie! The blaster if you please."  
Jamie saluted, grabbing a blaster from where he had hidden it behind a tree, and motioning to the others, who quickly surrounded the ten, who looked as though they hadn't expected this to come so soon.  
Hey, the kids had said they would help the guardians, but they couldn't abandon Jack Frost now, could they...  
Suddenly, they all gasped as dream sand shot from the blaster, Sandy completely startled.  
Clearly, Jack had kept some back from their prank war the year before...  
Did the spirit plan for everything?  
The others were too slow to react as Jack blasted them with the sand and fell asleep within moments.  
Then Jack span the blaster in his hands, before slipping it onto his back into one of the spare clasps.  
"Okay Jamie, sage two. Aww, come on guys? Ya didn't think I didn't know this was coming? Honestly... You can make it up to me by giving me a hand?"  
He was secretly proud of their perfectly executed plan, and knew he was lucky that Jamie had managed to battle against his sister's puppy dog expression. It must have taken a huge force of will...  
Ah well, he'd thank them all with a proper snowfall later that month. For now, they had a job to do.

An hour later, he stood back, admiring their handi-work, as the kids gave him high fives and ran home.  
Tooth was now covered in a glitter that would only disintegrate after seven days and was sporting a huge fake moustache.  
Flow and Clover's hair had been dyed every colour of the rainbow, in bright neon streaks.  
Jack had used some of North's magic to make Gale's perfectly cut-to-just-how-she-liked-it hair-which she had spent months perfecting- grow to her waist.  
Lily... well, he was too soft hearted to do anything much, so simply wrote '_Jack Frost For The Win'_ on her arm in ink which would last for days.  
Aspen and Shady? Well, in Jack's opinion, they should have known better that to think they could win, so the fact that their hair was now glittery and pink, as well as cupcake having added a little make up to their faces was... well. Karma.  
Bunny's fur had been died a load of different shades of pink, and Jack had taken the extra care of streaking his ears with a glittery mixture which was a nightmare to get off and the glitter took weeks to fully wash out.  
North... Well. Jack considered it one of his best masterpieces ever.  
He was in a neon pink tutu-which had been super-glued to his outfit- had had pink wings glued to the back of his coat, Jack had swapped his swords for sparkly pink wands, and his boots had been replaced with ballerina shoes, with ribbons that tied all the way up his legs. No to mention the ribbons that had been elaborately braided into his hair and beard, which were, as a result of the left over hair dye- varying shades of pink.  
Sandy however, well. Jack, even with his humble opinion of his pranks, was rather pleased with himself. Using a similar mixture to the one the guardians had used to change his snow to a different colour, he had dumped the mix-which he had let dry into a gloopy mess- over the snoozing guardian, who had been so surprised by Jack's attack that he had let some of the dream sand affect him and send him into a short snooze. He wished he could wait to see the guardians reactions , especially Sandy's, but he had places to go and things to do.  
Jack took the opportunity to snap a few photos, before he took off.  
He sighed as he realised that he wouldn't be able to make it snow properly for a couple of days until the magic wore off, and it would be several more days until the hair dye faded...  
Unless... Aha!  
With that thought, he flew off in the opposite direction, to visit one April Fool, who, he knew, would have something to change his hair back. Even if it was just white hair dye.  
_

The guardians and spirits alike, groaned as Sandy roused them from their impromptu nap.  
One by one, they finally took in everything...  
Gale had had a fit of growling as she realised that she would have to redo her hair. Aspen and Shady were horrified by their own new hair colour, and Shady ended up head-butting a tree for the sheer stupidity they had shown in going up against Jack.  
Bunny was growling and pacing, absent mindedly attempting to get rid of the glitter on his ears and looking mortified about his new colour scheme.  
Tooth had squealed, then groaned... then started flying backwards and forwards, reconsidering the decisions in her life that had brought her to this moment, whilst twirling the moustache with her fingers.  
Lily, considering how little had happened to her in contrast to the others, was realising that she might have to... well, not whack Jack across the head the next time he annoyed her.  
Flow and Clover? They had started shrieking and running in frantic circles, oblivious to any attempts to calm them down. They hated people messing with their hair...  
North, however, had, somehow, managed to find the funny side in his new attire, and was currently skipping about merrily, twirling the wands and ignoring his swords, which were jabbed in a tree for safe-keeping, where Jack had clearly left them. In a rough outline of the letter J. Typical.  
Sandy, however, had been confused as to what the goo was, and had quickly swiped it off...  
But it wasn't lone before he realised that it had done it's job. The next time he went to use his dream sand, he had a silent, shock induced, breathless coughing fit, completely astounded, as everything he tried to make came out in every colour of the rainbow. The kid had managed to change the colour of his dream sand...  
Even Flow and Clover had stopped running in circles at the astounding sight, and Shady eventually sighed.  
"Look, I like you guys? But... I'm going to have to withdraw from the field of battle. I want to be able to live in safety for the next century. I'll help out, but I'm not willing to risk the wrath of a vengeful Jack Frost. The last time I did, I was walking around like a bloody glow-stick for weeks."  
"I remember that. It was funny."  
"Oh, you would find it funny, Aspen."  
"Yup. But I'm with him. Sorry guys, but Clover is evil about her hair... If anything else were to happen, the Pole would end up a pile of rubble. I'm not front lining again, it was bad enough the last time."  
"Bad enough? You were stuck in a dunce hat for a month!"  
"I know, you didn't need to shout it to the world Shady..."  
"But it was funny."  
"Was not!"  
"Was too!"  
"Like the haircut was funny?"  
"... Don't even go there."  
"Well, I told you not to drop green gloop on his head!"  
The guardians all shared looks, wincing.  
What had they gotten themselves into...?

In the end, they decided that it would probably be best if they continued alone.  
After all, they were the guardians! They had defeated countless bad guys, saved the world more than once, had believers the world over... What was the worst that could happen?  
Though, from the various new looks they were all sporting, they had a pretty good idea.  
They spent the rest of the day trying to clear themselves up, though it didn't help.  
Later, Aspen dropped by, saying that Jack had decided to use him as a messenger, and handed them a few rolls of thick paper with a grimace.  
"You won't believe this..."  
They all groaned as they unrolled the paper, and revealed huge photo's of them, clearly from straight after they had got their looks changed.  
Along with a couple of photos...  
Which showed the posters up in the middle of various spirit meeting halls, where everyone in the rooms were grinning at them.  
Damn it, how had Jack snook into all those places? And how had he managed to get the pictures made up so huge?  
As much as they were inwardly groaning they had to hand it to him, he knew what he was doing...  
Then they read the accompanying note.

_The hair? Big mistake. The snow? _Huge_ mistake... THE JACKET? Mates, you better prepare for war..._

They all gulped... Now they were in trouble...  
Then North grinned.  
"But, war is what we wanted, Da? Maybe time for a little overdue training..."  
The others shared looks, then grinned at him with new determination.  
War it would be...  
_

Jack grinned as he shook Fool's hand.  
Not only had he been able to get his hair back to normal, but he had helped him blow up the pictures to huge proportions, before Jack had gone all ninja and snook into the spirit meeting places to stick them all up.  
Then he had also managed to get the paint off of his Jacket, after he had taken Jack's advice that maybe he should have things on hand in case of pranks that went too far.  
He had been able to do little about the snow, however, but Jack had simply grinned, thanked him for what he had done, and promised to tell him all the details as soon as the war was over...  
Now he was back at his own place, stocking up for the next thing he had planned...  
It would be difficult, sure... But worth it.  
_If _he could get through to Pitch Black...

Pitch Black stared as Jack sauntered into his lair, whistling as if he didn't have a care in the world.  
"Oh, hey Pitch!"  
"... Frost...?"  
"Sorry for the whole popping by without being invited, but you... well. Don't talk to people. Anyway, I need a favour."  
"... Have the guardians driven you insane?"  
"What? No... Why?"  
"... You just walked into my lair, without anyone else, and without even a weapon drawn..."  
"Oh yeah... That would seem a little strange, eh?"  
"... A little."  
To be perfectly honest, Pitch was too astounded to do more than stare dumbly at the youngest guardian. Especially when he spoke again.  
"Anyway I'm in the middle of a prank war with the guardians, and I need your help."  
"Y-you... you need my... help?"  
"Yup. To completely creep them out, and distract them long enough to let me get a few things in place. Plus I have no idea where they are and need a hand to find them."  
"... You're insane."  
"Nope. Bunny had me tested. I actually had old Whacko running in circles and pulling his hair out."  
"... I'm not helping you Frost. No get out of here before I get my nightmares to-"  
"Aww, come on! It would just be a one time thing, then we can go back to being mortal enemies and all that! You know you want to creep them out..."  
"No, I really-"  
The he made the mistake of turning around, only to see the expression of the devil on the winter spirit's face.  
"... don't."  
He felt every argument wash away as Jack widened his eyes even more, and he found he couldn't fight against the sheer... puppy... eye... ness. So, the rumours had been true, Jack really did have a secret weapon...  
It truly _was_ a weapon which could probably win him the entire bloody world, Pitch thought, as he found himself grudgingly agreeing, and Jack grinned widely.  
"Great! So, we need some nightmares, a bat-cape, and some cookies!"  
"... Oh Moon, I hate you Frost."  
"Good. Now here's the plan..."  
_

They had tracked the guardians to the warehouse, and Jack grinned as he sent the note flying through the window. He would feel a lot better if they were at the Pole for this. Then all the yeti's could have the joy of seeing the shock on their faces, and Phil could film it.  
Then Jack opened a portal and they both stepped through, Pitch refusing to listen to the small part of his brain that kept telling him that the guardian of fun was apparently making him have fun...  
The guardians read the note, simply saying _Go to the Pole. Or you'll never know what you missed_...  
Cursing their own ridiculously high levels of curiosity, and Jack's willingness to exploit it, they leapt through a portal, into the main living room...  
Just in time to leap aside as Jack came whooping past, riding a nightmare. They subconsciously took in the fact that he had managed to get his hair back to it's normal colour, before he leapt off, shooting them a salute, before yelping and vanishing into the Pole.  
"FROST! GET BACK HERE!"  
Pitch appeared around the corner, and, as per their plan, ignored the guardians-though it was hard not to fall about laughing there and then at their new... outfits? Looks? Whatever...- as he fired after Jack with a cookie blaster, wearing a batman outfit, as Phil ran after them, playing the original Batman theme tune  
The guardians simply stared for several minutes, at the doorway which the two had vanished through, and only blinked as a camera snapped at them.  
Then Jack leapt out, grinning again.  
"Ah, I love creeping people out. Oi!"  
He ducked more cookies, leaping around the room as Pitch entered again- again refusing to acknowledge the tiny part of his brain that insisted that he was having fun- shouting.  
"STOP STEALING MY NIGHTMARES!"  
"STOP FIRING COOKIES AT ME THEN!"  
"YOU STARTED IT!"  
"NO YOU STARTED IT!"  
"YOU STARTED IT!"  
"YOU STARTED IT!"  
"YOU STARTED IT!"  
"I STARTED IT!"  
"I STARTED IT- DAMN IT FROST!"  
"You said it..."  
"Bloody word twisting, nightmare stealing, irritating, devil eyed, conniving guardian..."  
"Why thank you! It's nice to feel loved- WOAH!" He dodged more cookies, diving and rolling behind the guardians, who suddenly got the full force of the cookie blaster.  
They all ended up in a tangled pile on the floor, shaking their heads as Pitch and Jack vanished through the window...

Jack grinned as he shook Pitch's hand.  
"Thanks."  
"Not a problem. Now will you leave me alone?"  
"Yup. Oh, and keep the suit. It suits you..."  
"Pun intended?"  
"Happy coincidence."  
"... Whatever you say Frost."  
They parted ways after that, and Jack grinned.  
Whilst the guardians had been distracted, he had opened a portal back to their warehouse, and had set up a few small pranks for upon their return.  
Not serious, but enough to make them paranoid...  
With that, he found himself yawning and decided to go get some sleep.  
That way, the guardians would be even more paranoid when he didn't do anything for a few hours...

The guardians all arrived back at the warehouse with confused frowns on their faces and headaches from trying to figure out what on Moon they had just witnessed.  
Some kind of shared delusion, maybe? It was not unheard of...  
They were quickly broken from their musings as Bunny reached and opened the door, only to find a catapult facing them. They had no time to duck as the thing fired a huge paint balloon at them, clearly having been triggered by the door opening and they all shared looks.  
It had a been a diversion...?  
They cautiously made their way through the door, disarming the trap, and tiptoed into the next room.  
Only to have North step on the rug and find that it was now covering a floor covered in marbles.  
His movements, combined with his outfit-him still being stuck in the pink tutu and wings and ballet shoes, made for one very bad version of Swan Lake... Especially as Crashing into a yelping Pooka and coming to a halt in a broom cupboard, filled with plastic balls which fell out as soon as it opened-North having used the door handle to pull himself upright and accidentally opening it- before promptly being knocked over again by said balls was not a scene in any ballet Tooth had ever seen. They were so distracted by that, that when North tugged the shoes off, finally, with a relieved sigh, he didn't look before shoving his feet in his boots, only to find that they had been filled with gloopy green goo that oozed over the sides.  
When he tried to change, he also realised that here was itching powder in all his clothes which meant, unfortunately for him, he was stuck as a fairy until he could get them cleaned...  
Which would require a trip back to the Pole... Which none of them were prepared to risk.  
Sandy was still startled every time he tried to make something and the sand came out on different colours, and Tooth was still blinking every time she caught sight of her reflection, though she had managed to get rid of the moustache.  
Bunny, however, knew that the dye on his fur would be there for at least a week and a half, and was trying to resign himself to the fact.  
It was hard bloody work...  
All in all, they may have won half a battle that day, but they were not winning the war...  
They had to find a way to change that...

* * *

**Me: *holding Yoda by the scruff of his neck* Ha, I told you not to annoy Jack Skellington and Jack Sparrow's monkey!  
Yoda: *grumbling* No danger in the monkey could I see...  
Jack Sparrow: No danger? Mate, that monkey's the left hand of the devil himself...  
Bugs Bunny: At least Yoda ain't met Marvin the Martian, eh? *sly look towards me*  
Me: Huh... *starts to muse*  
Vader: Oh... Oh Force no... Nononononononono... NO! SOMEONE STOP HER THINKING! AND SOMEONE GRAB YODA! *him having just worked his way free of my grip*  
Yoda: Haha, Free once again am I- Woah!  
Jackie Chan: *having just hoisted Yoda up by the scruff of his robes* You know, this guy is kind of cute if you think about it-  
Yoda: CUTE!?  
Vader: *smirks*  
Bugs: You think _that's_ cute? Okay Tweety, let em have it.  
Tweety: *turns on the cuteness factor overload switch*  
Everyone: *Blinks and stares adoringly at Tweety*  
Me: *oblivious to everything else* Marvin the Martian and Yoda... And maybe E.T? That could be an interesting conversation... *continues to mumble*  
Vader: *shoots me an exasperated look, and shoots everyone else a likewise exasperated look* Oh to the Force with it. Okay Readers, I'm just going to fill in yet again- *mumbles* I don't get paid enough to put up with all of this... *out loud again* Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and had plenty of fun at mine and Raven's expense during the fore and footnote. Everyone here did... So, without further ado, Porky Pig? Do your thing.  
Porky Pig: Th-th-th-th-that's all folks! *pulls screen to darkness*  
Me: *pokes head under the corner* Bye guys! See ya next chapter- JACK OF HEARTS! PUT DOWN THOSE COOKIE TARTS! Wait... cookie tarts- Jack Frost! What have I told you about-!  
Vader: *yanks me back behind the blank screen* Farewell younglings, and have no fear. I'll have everything in order by the time the next chapter is up.**

* * *

**Guest-** Awesomeness? Thanks! EPIC? Thanks again, Lol :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!

**MEC-** Yep, we are doomed... So doomed it;s funny, Lol :D And yup, now it is officially full out war, Lol :D And I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter before as well! And don't worry, Jack'll use his fairy fan-club to his advantage sometime in this arc I think... Anyway, glad you find the pranks helpful (I've tried a few of them myself, and they seem to work really well, Lol :D), and Good Luck with your own prank war!

**Sylvery-** Oops... Sorry! Ah well, at least you're enjoying the footnotes, Lol :D And I actually used '_I informed you thusly_' on one of my friend earlier today. She couldn't think of any response at all :D

**nabiya**- Why thank you! Glad you're enjoying it! And I may do that if I can squeeze it in, but if not, did this chapter enough April Fool and Pitch for you? Lol :D

**M:** Haha, couldn't have put it better myself :D The world is coming to an end my friends, Lol :D And I'm glad you enjoyed the Jack convention... You like the fore/footnotes I this chapter as well?  
And tell em about it... But then, you can't write a good prank chapter without someone jinxing themselves at least once, Lol :D  
Here that Bunny? You're a moron!  
Bunny: *growls* Yeah yeah, so I've been told... Now, if you don't mind, I have to go and plan our next attack?  
Me: *giggles evilly* Yeah, sure... *under my breath* not that it's going to work... Anyway, Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

**RobynSmith-** Not bored at all! I actually really enjoy answering reviews and such LD And wow, so many words! Thanks :D I'm glad you're enjoying the fic! I especially loved 'Prankarific'!(and I use the word 'anyway' a lot too, though I'm trying to stop myself... :D )  
As for the cookie recipe, I'm actually going to attempt it myself, as I haven't yet. But most of my own recipe's turn out okay, so I'm hoping these will :D  
And as for Another Week in Camelot and Merli' Merkit, I am actually planning on taking them off of Haitus in the next couple of weeks, and focusing on finishing them, as I will have more time on my hands... I'll be sure to put a quick note in this fic to let you know when I do :D  
And it's good to see the fics being enjoyed by people of all ages, Lol :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well! :D :D


	50. War of the Guardians, A Treasure Hunt

**Me: Okay, first of all, thanks to Omega-Saber, rosa_reyes_96780(sorry, but had to do under-slashes instead of full stops *eyeroll and sigh*) Leebecky06, warriorkittytailsdoll, Agrippina Pelageya, TheEndsongAbyssXV, Bay2929, mlequithinh, Harrison Orion Black, Caithlinn13 and WhiteWolfLegend for the faves and/or follows! I hope you continue to enjoy the fic! :D  
And second of all... 50 CHAPTERS! OH MY GOD JUST GAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!  
*runs around in circles screaming and waving my arms about like a loon*  
Vader: Ah... Yes, I was afraid that would happen. Okay, so it looks like I'm doing the forenote again... Ahem, right...  
Item one on the agenda, please ignore the huge battle which is going on behind me, inside a huge cloud of dust and flailing limbs, which is between pretty much every Looney Tunes character here. It may be rather amusing, but the black eye isn't worth it. Trust me- OW! DAFFY! STOP THROWING... was that a tyre? I don't even want to know...  
Err... Right, second thing on the agenda. Ah yes, Raven hopes that this will be one of the longest chapters she has done so far, so she apologises for the delay, but she did have quite a bit to do over the last few days.  
Item three, for those of you who read her Merlin fics, she has now updated Merkit and the 99 word drabbles series. Though several of you have already found this out... I have to say, she was rather unnerved when she got a couple of reviews inside of five minutes... Started ranting about how smileys were taking over the Universe- That one was your fault Lady Misa!- and Bugs Bunny was an imposter working for the Wizarding Wizengamot in the Harry Potter universe.  
And item four. Seeing as this is a rather important chapter, Raven has tried to incorporate as many requests as she could about characters being added and various tricks and pranks being played. I wouldn't know, but it looked rather tricky... So hopefully it came across okay,  
Anyhow, before I start ranting, allow me to introduce,_ with over 8000 words_, chapter 50 of It Takes Time... Enjoy!**

* * *

"TOOTH! DUCK! NORTH, TO YOUR LEFT!"  
Bunny was yelling even as he dove behind a tree, reloading his blaster.  
This was the third ambush they had walked into.  
Heck, it was a one person ambush and they were being beaten without Jack so much as breaking a sweat...  
Bunny provided cover fire as the others leapt behind trees, returning fire-though Sandy seemed to be in his own little world as he pondered things- and missing the flitting spirit completely as he vanished into the heavy canopy of trees once more...  
...

They had just decided to attempt to move again, and North attempted a combat roll between the trees, causing Tooth to sigh as she had to flit down and roll him behind one of the thicker trunks  
They were currently still hiding-though Bunny had worded it as a tactical response to a possible unseen danger of unknown proportions- behind various trees, armed with slingshots and blasters, and trying to blend in with the fauna as best they could... what with the various hair dyes and what not...  
They had been blasting at Jack all morning, but the spirit was being ridiculously nimble and agile and they had yet to land a single hit on him. Paint balloons, cookies, exploding teeth, egg bombs, elves... They had been throwing everything they could think of, and they had still not managed to catch him.  
Now he, on the other hand, had turned them into walking advertisements for rainbows...  
Bunny sighed as he saw Tooth roll North behind a tree, and cursed.  
Sure, let's start a straw war in the warren! Because it wouldn't escalate into a full blown war! Not at all...  
Yeah, he knew he was being sarcastic to himself, but he didn't care. He was still bright pink, had spent the last three hours in a stealth war, blasting at anything that moved, and rolling his eyes at Sandy, who was still musing as to how Jack could possibly have changed the colour of his sand. Heck, now he was sat in the lotus position, in the air, hovering over a cloud of rainbow sand with his _'I'm musing so do not distract me unless the world is ending_' face on.

It was a further half an hour of them trying to sneak towards the storage area and the orbs stashed in the warren-so they could escape- when Jack clearly decided that he wanted some more fun at their expense.  
Bunny was the first to blink as he heard a faint droning noise, but the others picked up on it as it got louder, and eventually, even Sandy perked up.  
Just as a battalion of planes, each being ridden by an elf who was holding the remote control for it, flew over them, releasing a wave of cookie dough bombs, which exploded on contact with the ground, splattering the entire area with chocolate chip goo.  
They all leapt for cover, all but Sandy, who simply moved closer to a tree, conjured a sand umbrella-again, in different colours- and returned to his thinking pose.  
The planes managed three runs before the guardians started firing back, and Bunny grinned as he caught sight of a distracted Jack.  
Brilliant... He lined up his shot, and fired, plastering Jack's jacket with bright red paint.  
Jack yelped as he toppled from the tree, before grabbing a branch and swinging himself to the ground, gaping at his jacket.  
Then he literally growled as he grabbed his staff and conjured hundreds of snowballs... Literally, hundreds.  
The guardians blinked, both amused and relieved that Bunny had finally managed to get Jack, but panicked because it had been the _jacket_... But before they could react, the missiles launched at them, burying them in snowdrifts... Blue snowdrifts, as Jack's snow was still blue.  
They managed to dig themselves out after a few minutes, only to be faced with a terrifying sight.  
Jack stood there, surrounded by empty planes, their pilots standing around him with wicked smiles on their normally cute and innocent faces.  
Jack grinned, not saying anything as he brought his arm up and let it drop. A clear signal.  
As one, the elves rushed the three guardians they could get to, and piled on in one huge tickling mass.  
Jack was in hysterics as the guardians all started laughing and crying as they were tickled, Tooth especially, being the most ticklish, had tears running down her cheeks as she tied to wriggle free.  
He also managed to snap a couple of photos, so he could send them to the others with the words _'Good thing you got out when you did...' _before he shot a salute at Sandy, shot him with a glue and feather bomb, and sauntered off, whistling.  
The elves, on the other hand, stayed where they were, keeping the guardians in semi-insane hysterics. Well, their 'Snow Prince/Lord' had give no orders to stop, so the small beings continued to tickle the guardians, until they finally managed to get through to Sandy who sent them all to sleep with dream sand.

It wasn't long before they got themselves together, and North realised that they had no way of getting the elves back to the Pole at this moment in time...  
Bunny gulped as he realised that this would mean they would be left alone, unsupervised, in the warren, before he grudgingly followed the others to the centre of the warren, not even bothering to try with the subtlety any more.  
They were nervous wrecks by the time they had reached the store rooms, their nerves in tatters as they had seen, often out of the corner of their eye, a figure in a blue hoody flitting between the trees around and above them, as well as hearing spooky yet terrifyingly familiar _'I have a plan' _chuckles echoing around them from all directions...  
Needless to say, they were all relieved to be inside the safety of the storerooms...  
The maze of storerooms that had just turned dark when someone-none of the guardians being near it- had slammed the door shut with an evil laugh as all of the lights went off.  
They were immediately back to back, weapons drawn, when North gave a startled exclamation.  
"My swords! They are not... my swords! They are simply plastic!"  
Bunny growled in frustration.  
"He's a ninja! It wouldn't have been exactly difficult to switch- Hey!" He blinked as he felt for his Boomerangs, only to find that they had been replaced with stuffed carrots.  
"Damn it... Okay Tooth? You're the closest to the light-switch!"  
"On it..." She carefully fluttered to the wall, roughly where she knew the switch to be, and started feeling for it...

Jack grinned as he silently let the ice he had formed on his hand melt, and then lay his freezing and wet hand on the light-switch... Any second now...  
"AAARRRGGGHHHHHHH!"  
He gave spooky laugh as he flicked the switch, turning the lights on, before turning to the others, Tooth still being in hysterics and flying in circles shouting about ghostly spirits coming for vengeance.  
Jack grinned at the others, who immediately took a step back, before he gestured to the longish hallway tunnel that led form the storeroom.  
More specifically, to the pedestal at the end, on which rested a single orb...  
He was also being completely silent, which creeped them out even more, though they got the message...  
Jack, who-they finally noticed- was wearing his ninja all in one outfit, pulled a ninja style mask over his face, before turning off the light-switch again with an ominous click.  
It wasn't as dark as they had thought, what with the faint light coming form the edges of the door, but Jack was now completely invisible...  
Bunny quickly made his way over to a shelf, and felt around until he gave a satisfied 'aha' and handed everyone a torch.  
Lit up in torchlight, the place looked ridiculously spooky, and the sudden movements of a swift shadow-also known as Jack in full on Ninja Stealth mode- made it even worse.  
None the less, they cautiously started down the tunnel...

"Yeow!"  
"NORTH!"  
"Sorry! Trip wire was not visible!  
"That's the whole idea ya drongo!"  
"GUYS! SHUT UP!"  
"You shut up- THE NET! Ouch... You okay?"  
"Bloody sticky web... DARN IT! TRIP-WIRE-"  
_Splat... Groaning._  
"We know. That's why we are covered now in paint, da?"  
"I said sorry!"  
"Look, just walk a little slower and be a bit more careful and- Sandy!"  
_A silent explosion of angry red sparks which quickly morphed to rainbow ponies as he flew into a shelf._  
"... Kay, that's a bit strange mate- NORTH!"  
"SORRY!"  
"Second time North. Even Bunny isn't as- BUNNY!"  
"Damn it! Bloody crates... NO! STAY STILL! THEY'RE EXPLODING POWDERED PAINT BOMBS!"  
"... WHY WOULD YOU HAVE EXPLODING POWDERED PAINT BOMBS!"  
"HONESTLY, WHAT IS IT WITH YOU MEN AND WEAPONS!"  
_Angry explosion of multi-coloured sparkle in an accusing pointed finger._  
"Just in case! Now careful not to step on them..."  
"Easier said than done, Bunn-"  
"Less chat, more dodging- North! Watch out for the… Shelf. Oh... Darn it."  
_Yelps. Explosions of blue and green and red and pink and white and yellow paint powder._  
"Okay, from now on I'm keeping a backup generator down here..."  
"Good plan."  
"I thought so... Just try not to get the powder wet. Otherwise it'll take hours to come off..."  
_A sudden creepy chuckle from the winter spirit had them all freezing before suddenly..._  
"Frostbite!"  
"Jack!"  
"Jack! No water! Be fair!"  
_Silence...  
More faint footsteps as they started walking again..._  
"... Why the Warren? Why can't we go destroy the Palace or-"  
"What about the fairies!"  
"... Fair point. All he has to do is smile and they're helpless against his charms..."  
"Elves are likewise affected, as are Yeti's, but more due to cookies, da?"  
"And don't even mention the googies... They bloody love him."  
_A small stream of golden sand. _  
"What's that Sandy? You're glad you don't have helpers?"  
"He has a point."  
"Da. But that means no forces for aiding the defeat of evil... and pranksters..."  
"Mate, Frostbite ain't got nobody aside from a few odd elves. And he's still whuppin our tails."  
"Is that the figure of speech?"  
"No. But I'm making it Tooth friendly."  
"Ah. Fair enoughs."  
"Enough."  
"Enough what?"  
"The figure of speech mate. It's fair enough."  
"What figure of speech? Enough of what?"  
"... I give up. Just keep walking- WOAH!"  
_Oomf... Splash... _  
"Damned it! How did he manage to rig water without a sound?"  
"Like I said. Ninja. Not that hard. You okay Sandy?"  
_A succession of images._  
"Huh... Really? He aimed it at us specifically? What can he see in the dark now?"  
"Think about it Bunny. Ninja have enhanced senses, Da? Work to hone senses..."  
"... Good point. But being this silent is bloody impossible!"  
_A chuckle. _  
"That's really bloody creepy Frostbite- GAH!"  
"Bunny!"  
"Bunny?"  
"How on Moon did he do that!?"  
"Do what?"  
"My bloody ears have bows tied around them and I only just realised..."  
_Silence...  
Laughter._  
"It's not funny"  
"But... No but... Ohahahaha..."  
"Mature Tooth. Come on North-"  
"Hohoho..."  
"Oh dear Moon, you did not just Ohohoho me!?"  
_A snort._  
"Of course I did not. I would never- TOOTH! THE-"  
_Yelp._  
"... Net of strung elastic... Can you get down?"  
"I... Actually, I think I'm stuck..."  
The sudden sound of string being cut or snapped, and Tooth yelped, before falling and landing on Bunny, sending him falling backwards, into North, who tripped backwards, triggering another trip wire and squashing Sandy beneath him in the process._  
_They were all immediately gunged with a wave of green goo, all aside from Sandy who managed to snake his way out in a trail of sand.  
"... I hate prank wars."  
"Motion seconded."  
"Too right mate. Damn it, I swear, this is the last time-"  
"Oh, like that will ever happen. You males are far too immature to-"  
"Oh, Us _males _are too immature?"  
"What are you trying to say Aster?"  
"... Nothing. Let's just get out of here."

_Yelps... Splat... Groans... Arguing... Yelps... Splat... Yelps... Groans... Crash... Bang... Poof... Arguing... Yelps... Groans... Arguing..._

"About bloody time... North? Grab the orb..."  
"Okay... The Palace!"  
"Why the palace!"  
"Warren is too easy a target. Pole has had fair share of destruction."  
"... You are going to be clearing the mess up."  
"Done. Let's just go! Before portal closes..."  
They all leapt through, blinking at the light, sitting up, still shielding their eyes, only to find themselves surrounded by fairies.  
Tooth sighed as she translated.  
"They said Jack came by for a visit yesterday... Must have been when we were still recovering from the Pitch Conundrum."  
"Ah... Then perhaps we should return to base, Da?"  
They ran to get an orb, only to stop, dismayed.  
The orbs had gone, and had been replaced with a map and a note.  
Tooth read the note, sighing as she realised that any chance of a rest that day was now out of the question.

_An orb is hidden at each of the locations marked on the map. A new location will be revealed after each orb has been found. Happy Hunting!_

_Jack._

North sighed.  
"We need orbs. Even if it is just one or two so we can stock up from Pole, Da?"  
They all nodded, and Bunny sighed as he peered at the map.  
"Okay, first location..." He gulped, face-planting the table, muttering about never underestimating the damned Frostbite again...  
Tooth leant over the map, with Sandy and North, and likewise groaned at the spirit's sheer audacity.  
"First location. Underneath Pitch's throne, in his lair. How on Moon did he sneak in-"  
"It does not matter. We must get orb. And we must never underestimate the Ninja abilities again, agreed?"  
"Too right."  
"Agreed."  
A firm nod from Sandy.  
"Okay then... To... Pitch's."  
_

Sandy was ridiculously tempted to start playing the Mission Impossible theme tune, but seeing as they were sneaking around the edge of the biggest room in Pitch's lair, it might not be such a good idea.  
Still... He was humming it inside his head as they crept, as quietly as they could, through the room.  
They finally got close enough to the throne to be able to spot the silent nightmare that was patrolling in front of the throne... And there was the orb.  
"We need a distraction..." Bunny whispered, faintly, and they all nodded.  
Then, as they all debated, Sandy rolled his eyes, threw golden arrows to get their attention, and mimed waltzing out and distracting the nightmare as they grabbed the orb, then meeting them outside.  
They all shared look, before North spoke up.  
"You are sure?"  
A head nod. Honestly, life was so much easier when he had Jack around to help translate.  
They all nodded, and Sandy commenced a silent countdown with his fingers.  
Three... Two... One!  
He leapt out, and started sauntering across the room, before spinning out of the way of the nightmare, which had come launching itself at him.  
The other three ran forward, Tooth grabbing the orb, and dodged the snapping Nightmare and the grinning Sandy, before running out of the tunnel.  
Sandy was close behind, and they grinned as they finally burst into the clearing.  
Their grins faded, however, when Pitch suddenly materialised in front of them, looking rather annoyed.  
"What are you doing here?"  
They were about to reply, when they heard a laugh, and span to see Jack.  
Who clapped and nodded from his perch on the branch above them.  
"Impressive..."  
They all backed away sightly, before legging it behind Pitch, using the astounded Nightmare King as a shield. Who stared at them in utter confusion.  
"What, In MiM's name, is going on here Frost?"  
"Just... A little game."  
"Eurgh. Implication being fun?"  
"... Well, for me maybe."  
"... I approve. Now leave."  
He grinned, before snapping a salute and flying away, leaving Pitch to glare at the Guardians, who all shrugged before Bunny tapped a tunnel and they all leapt down it, before taking a tunnel from the Warren back to the palace and the map.  
Pitch stared at the spot where they had vanished with a completely bemused look, before he simply rolled his eyes and entered his lair.  
Damned Guardians...  
_

They all groaned again when they read the location of the next clue.  
"You know," Bunny said, as they left, this time deciding to walk it, seeing as it was not far to their next location, "I swear he just picked these to annoy us..."  
"Definitely..." Tooth said, sighing. "Why else would Jack hide an orb in a pot of gold in Spectrums house?"  
"House? He lives in a rainbow half the time!"  
"Yeah... Same difference."

They all finally managed to reach Spectrums permanent office, only to see Shimmer, his assistant, rolling her eyes at them.  
"_Four_ guardians? What did he do this time?"  
"What did who do this time?"  
They all span to see Spectrum, the spirit of rainbows, walk in, in his usual outfit.  
He was, as normal, wearing all black with spikes and chains- after he had found out about the human style of Punk Goth, he had never looked back- with multi-colured bangles on his wrist multi-coloured, spiked up hair and a multi-coloured belt to represent the colours of the rainbow.  
"Ah, Tooth me old gal! Nice to see you! Sandy, what, in the name of Mother Earth, happened to your sand? Anyone would mistake you for me..."  
"Jack Frost."  
Bunny simply had to say the two words before Spectrum gave a sharp whistle.  
"Ouch, I'd heard... Impressive work-"  
"Yeah. For you maybe."  
"Now now Azzy, calm yerself."  
"Don't call me Azzy."  
"Fine, sheesh. Someone's moody. Then again, being bright pink, I guess you have reason to be... Ahem, anyway, what brings you all here?"  
North sighed.  
"Jack hid one of my portal orbs somewhere here. In one of your 'pots of gold'..."  
Spectrum snorted.  
"Oh dear, of course he did... Well, let's see if we can get it back for you, shall we?"

He led them into the bar he ran, behind his office, and grinned as he scanned the huge bottles of golden liquid, one of the most popular drinks in the spirit world and one of the most sweet and alcoholic too. It was a favourite pass-time of some people to attempt to drink one of the five litre containers full of the stuff... But only fourteen in the History of the entire bar-bearing in mind it dated back to when it was called a tavern- had ever managed it.  
He grinned as he finally found the one he was looking for.  
"I'm assuming that this one is it. After all, none of the rest have a small note saying '_Payment is on the side. Please film this? Jack Frost_.' after all. Or have a magical orb that seems to be spelled to stay under the liquid... Looks like it will all have to be drunk. Who's up?"  
They all shared looks, before Tooth fluttered forward.  
"Me I guess. These guys really can't hold their drink."  
Spectrum grinned.  
"As I recall, even you can't after a point Tooth-"  
"Zip it Spec."  
"Zipped..."  
The few spirits in the bar span, interested, as they realised the Guardians were there. True, they had all heard about Jack's _little_ war, and it was not hard to put two and two together and realise that this was all due to the youngest Guardian.  
There interest notched up as Tooth sat herself a the table and lifted the bottle, with a glare at the guys.  
"If any of you ever comment on anything I might do or say after this, I will personally floss you into eternity, am I understood?"  
They all nodded, knowing well that it was not an idle threat, and she sighed before starting to drink.  
After a litre of the drink, she started to get giggley... Two litres had her slightly tipsy. Three, she was a little off balance... Four she was complaining about her job and how she had the worst people to work with... Then she reached four and a half- the point at which the most resilient spirits often gave up on the challenge- at which point she was clearly drunk.  
Spectrum was about to recommend that maybe one of the others finished it, when Tooth suddenly tipped it up and downed the remaining half a litre within a few gulps, setting the bottle down, and face-planting the table.  
"I hate you all..."  
North grabbed the orb as it rolled from the bottle, and grabbed the drunken and unsteady Toothiana with his other arm.  
"Okay, I think we'd better get her back before she does something ridiculous."  
Tooth was giggling, and suddenly burst into hysterics.  
"Tooth!?" Spectrum looked panicked, whereas the Guardians were simply rolling their eyes and sighing at how much of a job they would have keeping her under control.  
"Haha, rainbows are funny... and girly... and you're a guy and it's funny..." She dissolved into more giggles, hiccuping, as North handed the orb to Bunny and grabbed Tooth around the waist, throwing her over his shoulder and walking back into the office, Spectrum's glare at the other customers having them pointedly looking at her drinks.  
He grinned at them as they left, making them promise to visit again soon, and went to add Tooth's name to the list of people who had passed the challenge.  
Now let's see people say the Guardians were too responsible...  
_

They realised that they really didn't need to go searching for the other orbs, but they were actually kind of curious as to what Jack had done, and decided to try and get the rest for the sole purpose of seeing just how creative Jack could be... Or, as the still drunk Toothiana put it- _Let's see what else Frosty boy came up with inside his pretty little noggin, shall we!?_  
They hadn't had the heart to refuse the giddily giggly and happy Guardians, which was why they found themselves looking at the next location on the map...  
_Burgess.  
_They all sighed at that. Not again...

They arrived in Burgess a few minutes later, having decided to use one of their orbs to get to the Pole, where North got the sleigh to take them.  
It was not hard to see the orb. It was encased in a frozen X in the middle of the field. X literally marking the spot... But finding it wasn't the problem...  
The problem came in the form of a dozen kids, all facing them with blasters and piles of blue snowballs at their feet, all wearing identical grins.  
They all shared a look, or rather, the three guys shared a look as Tooth started making snow angels in one of the patches of snow, giggling still, much to the kids amusement.  
North sighed.  
"Okay, me and Bunny will provide distraction. Sandy? Get the orb and fly back to Palace, we shall follow in sleigh."  
They both nodded, and burst into action.  
It was easy enough for Sandy to get to the ice, and he quickly made a dream sand blanket for the ice, which let him melt it enough for him to break in and grab the orb.  
He then shot the other two a salute and sped off, sighing and grabbing Tooth as he did so, slinging her over his shoulder as she pouted and crossed her arms in a huff at being taken away from '_the best fight EVER!'_ And that it was _'Because she was a girl! Wasn't it!?'_ And that '_They were all old sticks in the mud and wusses'._  
North and Bunny were not so lucky...  
The kids split off into two groups and one team, led by Cupcake, aimed at the Guardians whilst the other, led by Jamie, hindered them from escaping to the sleigh.  
Eventually, North managed to reach the sleigh and rolled his eyes a Bunny, who was being used as a climbing frame by several younger children.  
"Bunny! Use the tunnel!"  
He nodded, and the kids let go as he tapped a tunnel.  
He gave them a quick grin before disappearing, at which point North finally took to the sky himself.  
The kids gave each other high fives as they head back, grinning as Jack appeared to congratulate them before flying off again, saying something about having to send out some photos.

Sandy blinked as Bunny appeared out of a tunnel, only a few seconds after he flew in at the window, covered in blue snow and groaning.  
"I could sleep for a week..."  
Sandy signed something as he deposited a lightly snoring Tooth on a sofa, and Bunny nodded.  
"Yeah, North should be here soon. I couldn't get to the sleigh. The little ankle biter's had me surrounded... No, I wasn't outsmarted by a bunch of kids Sandy. No, I was not!... Was not!... Was not!... Was-"  
"Do you understand the concept of trying to sleep Aster!?"  
"Sorry Tooth..." He waited till she had drifted back off again, and turned back to Sandy, muttering as he shook the snow from his fur.  
"Was not-"  
"Bunnymund!"  
"Shutting up!"  
_

They had decided to wait until the morning to try and get the next orb, but the location had them changing their minds.  
After all, they were more likely to be able to sneak around April Fool's workshop in the middle of the night as in the middle of the day...  
The sheer ludicrous of the assessment had Tooth back to giggling hysterically, singing that the world was going to 'hell in a hand-basket' and something about 'Another one biting the dust'.  
None of them asked how on Moon Jack had done it. None of them mentioned that the idea was next to suicidal. None of them mentioned that if Fool caught them sneaking around his workshop, the next hundred years would be unbearable...  
They were too eager to see if they could do it.  
Tooth, muttering about Bloody Males and their ego's decided to stay behind, half due to the hysterics she was currently having bouts of, and half due to the fact that she might as well get some of her work done... No matter how tipsy- She had whacked Bunny over the head for calling her drunk and the Pooka's resulting yelp had the others reconsidering their terminology-.  
The three guys head out, Sandy spreading dreams as the others too the sleigh and catching up as they reached the end of the road were April Fool's shop was located.  
Okay, so they simply had to break in, find the huge cardboard cut out of an orb, grab the actual orb beneath it, and escape... preferably without setting off any of the multitude of Booby Traps and pranks that were no doubt waiting for them, because of April Fool's over the top paranoia about his work if nothing else. True, Jack would probably have told him that he was borrowing his workshop for a prank, meaning that there would be even more booby traps and defensive measures set up, but they were the Guardians! They could sneak into the lair of the Prank Artist!  
Simple...  
Or not.  
At all.

They all sighed as they stood outside the store, before heading forward.  
Sandy head in first, using a trail of sand to click the lock and let them in.  
They quickly head through the store, to the door on the far side, letting Sandy do the same thing, and opening the door... Only to gasp.  
The room was huge! And there, on the other side of the cluttered space, likely crawling with tripwires and sensors, was a huge cardboard cut out of an orb.  
Suddenly, a voice sounded from beside them.  
They relaxed slightly when they realised it was pre-recorded.  
"Okay, Frostie has told me of his little plan, and I was more than happy to let him borrow my workshop. Needless to say, if any of the many traps are set off tonight, I will most certainly not be amused. Unlike some eternally active Winter spirits, I actually like my sleep. And I do not like it interrupted... You've had you're warning. Oh, and don't touch anything. That means you too Aster Bunnymund!"  
The voice vanished, and Bunny, who had literally just been about to touch a small device, instantly pulled his hand back.  
They all shared looks, and sighed, before stepping further into the room.  
Too late to turn back now...

It took them nearly an hour to traverse the space.  
Each step was examined from all angles by Sandy, and his every move was examined by the other two, and so they managed to avoid the twenty three trip wires they found.  
They were also careful to not touch anything at all, though there were a few close calls.  
The entire trek had North doing acrobatics and freezing in ridiculous positions that he had not even known he was capable of, and they all gave a huge sigh of relief as they reached the far side of the room...  
North was just about to reach for the orb when he froze.  
"I am not believing it..."  
Sandy and Bunny noticed the last defence mechanism a moment later, and groaned.  
A web of fine wires was strung around the orb, and a switch which clearly released the wires to allow the orb out.  
After a few seconds, it became clear that there was only one way to get through the tangles mess of wires without a fairy to help, and Sandy formed a light trickle of sand.  
The next ten minutes were some of the most stressful and tense that they had ever experienced as Sandy let the sand gently work it's way around the maze of wires.

Finally, he pressed down on the switch, and snatched the orb out, cradling it.  
They all heaved sighs of relief, and North tucked the orb into a pocket, accidentally dislodging a cookie.  
"NO!"  
Sandy dived just as Bunny cried out, and managed to catch the cookie before it could land on a trip wire.  
Moon only knew what would happen if even the slightest pressure was placed on one of them...  
They spent the next half an hour carefully recreating their route, Bunny all the while talking about the dangers of cookies on missions and how they should never tell Tooth as she would end up spreading the story of how they had almost been ousted by a cookie, Sandy agreeing with him with silent gestures, and they all breathed huge sighs of relief as they reached the doorway...  
Then North slipped on a Banana skin which had most assuredly not been there before, and pulled on a lever to stop himself falling.  
As soon as the lever was pulled down, however, all of the trip wires were lifted out of the way, all of the sensors were switched off and the proper lights were turned on, leaving a perfectly safe room. Which they could have traversed with total ease, and could have been in and out within minutes.  
They all shared looks, and silently decided to never mention this moment again. Ever. Then they shut the door behind them and left, each mentally face-palming themselves.

The following morning, Tooth was feeling slightly better, though the start of a hangover was creeping up on her, giving her cravings for sugary snacks, and they looked at the next location on the map, before simultaneously sighing and turning to face the table in the corner, where, sure enough, four boxes lay.  
Brilliant...  
There was a box labelled for each of them, as well as a wooden puzzle.  
And instructions.  
Okay, so... There was a key inside the puzzle. They had to solve the puzzle to get the key to open the box and get the orb. It was to, apparently, give them a break.  
They had to admit, it was creative...  
Bunny cursed as he finally solved the puzzle and the key fell into his palm, just as North's did. The other two hadn't been much faster, though Tooth could have probably had it done inside half an hour if she wasn't constantly flitting back and forth to fetch chocolate and other sugary snacks, much to Baby Tooth's delight. She was glad that Jack's plan had worked out...  
Without the others realising, she flew off and sent a quick message to Jack with a messenger egg, saying that Tooth had succumbed to a Sugar-Rush addiction.

Three hours. Three bloody hours it had take to solve the puzzle.  
Bunny growled to himself as he hopped to the boxes.  
He unlocked the box and set the orb join the others, a few seconds before North's did, and he sank into a chair, sighing.  
"So much for a break. This was worse than the full blown battles!"  
"True there. I was not aware puzzles could be so difficult! It would have been easier to have-"  
"Don't jinx it! Seriously!" Tooth literally slapped her hands over their mouths to stop them from talking, before glaring at them.  
"No jinxing it." Then she let them go, and flew over to the table.  
Then she blinked.  
"Oh no... He cannot be serious..."  
"What?"  
"The rest of the orbs... They are hidden at various places throughout..." she gulped, "The Monastery..."  
They all shared looks, and North flexed his fingers.  
"Well, comrades, it has been nice knowing you. Shall we suit up?"  
"Let's."  
"Of course."  
A flash of golden sand, revealing Sandy in full army gear, was also a clear affirmitive, and they all head to the base to get suited up.  
They knew it was ridiculous. They didn't have to go and get the orbs...  
But they would be damned if they were going to chicken out.  
After everything else, how bad could it be...?  
_

Jack grinned as one of the Yeti's, Yeti Bob, told him that the sleigh had just landed in the monastery.  
Perfect.  
Now to set his many traps in motion...  
First of all, the trail of the most appetising sugary treats he had been able to find...  
And how did he know that Tooth would follow the trail? Well, let's just say it was useful to have allies...

Tooth blinked as she reached for a chocolate bar, only to find that they were not there.  
"Guys! THE CHOCOLATE HAS GONE!"  
They all froze, then shared panicked looks.  
A Toothiana, in the midst of a Sugar Rush addiction, without access to sugar?  
Too terrifying a thought to entertain...  
Still, they had enough sense to shout a warning as Tooth caught sight of a chocolate bar poking from the pocket of one of the yeti's belts.  
But it went unheeded and she eagerly grabbed the chocolate when it was offered to her, not noticing the grin the yeti gave, and downed it in a few mouthfuls.  
"NEED MORE CHOCOLATE! Come on, he's a teenager! Surely he has chocolate around here!?"  
The three guys shared a look, before sighing and following her as she darted through one of the corridors... Trap, maybe, but it would be better than Tooth on a sugar high hangover comedown... That one other time, oooh, a hundred or so years ago, was still being told in legend form at Christmas parties world wide...  
None of them, as they left, noticed Baby Tooth munching happily on chocolate, that she had secretly stashed under the seat during the flight.

Tooth flitted backwards and forwards throughout the different rooms, actually finding most of the orbs in her quest for sugar, and activating dozens of booby traps. From the simple trip wire and bucket of paint, to the one they had just been subject too, namely the floor sliding from beneath them and sending them on a yell filled trip down an ice chute, to the ice slide that dropped two floors.  
They were currently picking themselves up from a deep pile of snow- In which not even Bunnymund's ears reached the surface- and Tooth was quick to brush off the snow as she spotted a sign that must have come from MiM himself...  
Namely an arrow that pointed down, at a table with some of Jack's best cookies-still warm and oozing chocolate- resting there on a plate.  
Now, even in their normal state, none of the guardians had ever been able to resist them, though the fact that they were currently at war with the spirit made Bunny and Sandy strong willed enough to resist temptation.  
Even North managed it, with a little help restraining himself from Bunny.  
Tooth however, though she fought valiantly against the temptation, was starting to suffer withdrawal symptoms from the lack of sugar, and even Sandy's dream sand-even though it was only the lighter stuff- couldn't fight against the determined Fairy Queen, who reached the table and grabbed one of the cookies.  
The moans of pure ecstasy were almost enough to crack the other,s but they managed to hold firm, and prized Tooth away from the treats, but not before their purpose became clear.  
Tooth blinked as she caught sight of her reflection in a sheet of ice, and yelped when she realised that her teeth were... Green!?  
More specifically, pretty much the exact same green as Jacks hair when she had dyed it...  
So this was why no-one wanted to get on his bad side...  
But, she reasoned, her Sugar Cravings getting the better of her, he prank had already occurred, so there was no reason to waste perfectly good cookies.  
The others were completely astounded when she simply went back to eating the cookies, and shared looks.  
So... Jack had revenge in mind?  
They all thought back to various times they had annoyed or managed to get the spirit recently, and all three simultaneously gulped.  
Bunny was sure that Jack would not forgive him nearly ruining his jacket...  
North was sure that Jack would not easily forgive making him slip on a slippery floor and crash into a pyramid of balls...  
Sandy remembered the time he had given Jack a dream of him and Pitch skipping in circles in a field of flowers whilst wearing matching pink outfits that said Best Friends Forever on them...

Jack grinned from his perch in the top corner of the ceiling, as he realised they were just understanding the depth of their mistake in coming here, and cheerfully hopped down, sliding down the side and coming to a smooth landing in front of the Guardians.  
"Hey guys. I hear the Spirit world is buzzing of news that one of the Guardians managed to pass the 'Pot Of Gold' challenge. In fact, it's inspired several rather put out spirits to attempt it. I have to say, Spectrum looked rather happy about the business boom."  
The others were all too shocked and nervous about his close proximity and causal air to have paid much attention to that, and Jack grinned.  
"So... Bunny? I just thought I would let you know. I think that the fact you're gonna be pink for the next week or so has kinda filled out my desire for prank retribution. Time honoured tradition you know... But I'm still rather out out about the Pyramid fiasco North... And the dream Sandy..."  
The two spirits in question backed up slightly, ending up behind Tooth, who simply rolled her eyes at them using her as a shield before returning to her cookies.  
Jack grinned, hopping into the air and letting the wind grab him.  
"So... Have fun!"  
With that, the whole snow platform they were on gave way, and they were al falling down a snow bank.  
They came to rest at at a doorway to the training room, and North groaned as he saw what faced them.  
The way back was blacked, and the other doors had been shut, leaving the only way out on the other side of the room... But to get there, they had to pass through said room, which was filled with huge pyramids of rubber balls, huge snowballs, huge pyramids of bubbles and yeti guards with blasters.  
Brilliant...  
They others all sighed as they took it in, and Bunny resolved to ask North just what he had done to annoy Jack so badly, before Tooth suddenly darted from the doorway and dove behind a pile of rubber balls, Sandy doing the same thing on another pile, this time of snowballs.  
"Move! Duck and Cover Serpentine manoeuvre and DON'T KNOCK DOWN THE PYRAMIDS!"  
They both blinked.  
Tooth is sugar induced Warrior Queen mode?  
Who were they to argue with that?  
They both leapt behind different piles, and so began the strangest game of Cat and Mouse they had ever played.  
They managed to reach the middle of the room before disaster struck, and Tooth was blasted with a paint splatter, which sent her tumbling into Sandy, who ended up being thrown backwards.  
He crashed into a pile of rubber balls, which sent them flying everywhere...  
The rubber balls knocked into piles of snowballs, sending them tumbling everywhere, piles of bubbles, which splattered everywhere, including over the guardians, and into other rubber ball piles, which caused the entire process to repeat itself.  
They all broke rank after that, sprinting for the far door, and Tooth sank against the wall when she reached the safety of the corridor. Sandy soon joined her, letting his dream sand umbrella fall, and Bunny was not long after, though he ended up sliding from the room and crashing into the other wall, before getting back up and sighing.  
They waited for a few more seconds, but North didn't appear, and they peered back in, only to laugh at the scene which met them.

North, it appeared, had been blocked in by a pile of rubber balls, and had finally seemed to have simply given up. He was now sat in the middle of the room, arms crossed and with a scowl on his face, the odd snowball or rubber ball landing on his head, with a comical plonk, as it was dislodged by the Yeti's.  
He waited till the chaos in the room had steadied, before he got to his feet and fought his way through the bubble and snow strewn floor, slipping a couple of times before he reached the corridor.  
"I am swearing, I will never prank Jack again."  
"You pranked him!? Mate, what did you do!"  
"Made floor slippery and sent him into pyramid of balls which fell on top of him, in front of workshop full of Yeti's and elves."  
The others gaped at the sheer guts of the man in front of them, before Bunny shook his hand, very formally.  
"Rarely have I seen acts of such bravery my friend."  
"I thank you..." North said, returning the hand shake, before turning to Sandy.  
"But what dream did he speak of?  
Sandy blinked, before shaking his head and putting a finger to his lips.  
"Surely is not as bad as all that?"  
Sandy simply gulped and nodded, before a voice came from behind them.  
"It was."  
They all span to see Jack, leaning against a wall and with a dangerous glint of mischief in his eyes.  
"Almost as bad as every other prank played on me put together... Let's just say that the content of the dream still gives me nightmares... Which is why retribution will not be coming from me. Yup, that's right Sanderson. Pitch knows... I would feel bad about pranking you when I already know Pitch has something set up which will irritate you for quite some time..."  
"Irritate?"  
"Uhuh. Seems he caught the Pranking bug. Anyway want to surrender yet?"  
"Never!" This was Tooth, who gave her best warrior queen pose. "You may have won the battle, but you will not win the war! I call for a full battle to declare a victor!"  
"Time?"  
"Three days from now. Daybreak."  
"Location?"  
"The usual. The plain outside Santoff Claussen."  
"Restrictions?"  
"Nothing permanent. The battle will continue until the last man on either side, or until one side offers total, complete and unconditional surrender. No breaks, unless agreed upon by the leading parties of both teams."  
"Allies?"  
"We shall call on all those who aided us, and as many more as we can find."  
"Ah good. Finally, a proper work out. You've got yourself a deal Princess."  
They shook hands, and Jack grinned.  
"So, three days time... Until then, allow me to leave you a prating gift."  
He grinned, whistling, before floating into the air and zooming off, leaving a faint rumbling sound behind.  
They all span just in time to yelp as a huge snowball sped down the corridor towards them, before rolling over them and leaving them in a huge pile of snow.  
Bunny sighed.  
"Tooth? You know what happened last time we had a full out war..."  
"But this time he will be on his own. Surely not even Jack can win this one?"  
hey all shared looks, before pulling themselves out of the snow and heading back towards the sleigh, ready to start making preparations. None of them mentioning that Jack would likely be pulling out all the stops on this one...  
And using every skill he had.  
Ah well, it would be interesting- _Thunk._  
"Damn it Frostbite! Stop throwing elves at me! "

* * *

**Me: So... What did you think...? Good enough for the 50th chapter...? I know I exceeded the 6000 word limit, so yippee for that! (Though the end could have been a little more creative I suppose... And sorry it was a bit later than planned) And the arc will be concluded in the next chapter, which will have the biggest battle scene I have ever written, or am ever likely to write again.  
Anyways, I'm afraid I can't say much, as the Looney-Tunes battle has just exploded-literally- from the contained ball of flailing limbs and smoke to my training room... Where Bugs and Daffy are now duelling with lightsabers, Calamity Sam and Wil-e-Coyote are shooting at Road runner with blasters, and Tweety has decided to try out being evil, and is currently at war with everyone else having made multiple clones that are seven foot high and like singing disney love songs.  
So, I'm afraid I will have to leave you with Vader as I help the last of the Jack convention guests to their own universes, attempt to pry Jackie Chan, Jack Frost, Jack Sparrow and Jack Harkness from the toon battle, and generally try to leave my mind palace let standing... *sigh* Vader? Fill in?  
Vader: Of course. Though I have t say, this is quite a 50th chapter party, eh?  
Me: *face palm* Men and their battles... Catch you later guys! *pulls out lightsaber and a cream pie and rushes into the fight*  
Vader: Right... Okay, so... Actually I don't think there is anything to say. Hope you enjoyed he chapter, hope those of you with the requests enjoyed how they were written, and hope you all look forward to the next chap- SYLVESTER! THAT CRAM IE HIT ME!  
Me: *shrugging sheepishly* Actually, that was me... Sorry!  
Vader: … *Sighs* I give up. Okay, Until next time, Younglings. Oh, and MEC? I do not appreciate being called 'daddy vader'  
Me: *calling over whilst holding Porky pig in a headlock with one arm and battling Bugs Bunny with my lightsaber with my other* Ignore him! I think it's cute! He just doesn't want to ruin his precious _bad boy _image...  
Vader: *scowls* If you will all excuse me? *spins and throws a cream pie at me*  
Me: *freezes in shock as it hits my shoulder and explodes* (I'll never say this to him, but I actually like strawberry ;) )  
Everyone else, including all the Jack's: *likewise freeze, before hastily running for the exits, scrambling to get out and shouting about coming by some other time*  
Me: *spinning slowly* Did you just... Throw a cream pie at me...?  
Vader: *stepping back* Well... 50th chapter... Had to do something to amuse the readers...  
Me: … *mutters to you guys* Normal authors have nice speeches or maybe virtual fireworks displays or cookies. I get splattered with cream pies after a war with the Looney Tunes. What does that tell you, eh? *suddenly shoots an evil maniacal grin at Vader* Amuse the readers? How about them seeing you having your backside handed to you?  
Vader: Okay, now there is no need to- AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHH! *pulls out lightsaber, blocks a couple of strikes and legs it around the room*  
Me: *chasing him* This is GREAT! Don't worry guys, I'll leave him in one piece for the next chapter... Maybe... *Evil grin as I pull out another cream pie from my, ridiculously larger on the inside than the outside, cape* Until next time! *throws pie and fist pumps as it splats, right on target, on Vader's back*  
Vader: *spins and throws one of his own, which splatters over my outfit*  
Me: *growling* I loved that cape... *winks at you guys* I knew there was a reason I chose him. The only candidate who could hold his own in a battle... Ah well, See ya!**

* * *

**RobynSmith-** Hope you enjoyed the prank you requested :D And the chapter as a whole, Lol :D And Im glad you enjoyed the last chapter! That moment with Shady was one of my faves too!

**Gamecocks awesom-** Glad you're enjoying! Hope you continue to do so :D

**SilverFrost- **That might have been interesting... Ah well, I kinda like Shady as a Guy :D

**Silverwolf-** I love the plane idea! I'm not planning too many more chapters now, but I'll see if I can put it in! Cheers for the idea :D

**Hacker44**- Well, Glad I could give you a decent welcome back present, Lol :D Glad you enjoyed the Jack convention as well, and that is my all-time fave line from Pirates of the Caribbean, Lol :D As well as 'Stop blowing holes in my ship!' and 'I got a jar of dirt!'  
And yes, he got the pink out. Took an awful lot of soap, but we managed it, Lol :D Good thing too. It was his favourite one :D

**Guest-** Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!

**MEC-** Glad you enjoyed the different outfits, Lol :D I had fun thinking them up and incorporating your ideas :D And yep, GO CUTENESS! I swear Jack could take over the world with that look if he wanted to, Lol :D  
And *sigh* Water over someone's head? So cliché... Go on, show him how it's done :D  
Oh, and why of course! Jack conventions are awesome! Though kinda tiring...  
And thanks :D I'm glad you're enjoyng it! Yo Vader! Say bye!  
Vader: *from where he is sorting through various light-sabers debating the merits of them with Luke* Oh, Hi MEC! Bye MEC!  
Me: Aww, father-son bonding time... How sweet :D Well, Till next time!


	51. War of the Guardians, The Finale

**Me: Hey guys, First of all, thanks so much for the reviews and feedback from the last chapter! It honestly made my _week _to read all of the reviews :D :D  
Oh, and thanks to Light's-Embrace, Sweet-Strawberry-09 and Crumbellina Di Caramello for the faves and /or follows :D  
It's appreciated guys :D *hugs, then starts to hum to myself and eat skittles for no apparent reason*  
Vader: *Enters the room, whistling the tune to Indiana Jones, again for no apparent reason*  
Me: *throws Skittle at him* Here, taste the rainbow.  
Vader: … What?  
Me: *rolls eyes, and gives him a handful of skittles* Taste the Rainbow.  
Vader: *eyes them suspiciously before putting them back in the packet* N thanks-  
****Me: *Throwing them again, one after the other* TASTE THE RAINBOW DAMN IT! IM WARNING YOU! I HAVE CAPS-LOCK ON!  
****Vader: *yelps and runs, not getting more than two steps before I tackle him to the ground and force a handful of skittles into his mouth*  
****Me: *Grins* There. What do you-  
****Vader: GIVE ME MORE OF THE RAINBOW!  
****Me: *clutching them closer* No! MY PRECIOUS!  
****Vader: *leaping to his feet and trying to grab them* GIVE ME THE SKITTLES!  
****Me: NO! *keeps them out of his reach, until he grabs them and runs off, giggling like a little kid, before sitting in the corner and munching on them*  
****Vader: RAINBOWS!  
Me: *growls, then shrugs, pulling another bag out from my cape and munching* Enjoy the chapter guys!**

* * *

North whistled to himself as he prepared their weapon stores.  
Bunny, Tooth and Sandy were out rounding up potential allies, and though they were no doubt going down, he was sure most people would jump at the chance for a battle where there was slim chance they would be able to get a prank over on Jack Frost.  
The first to rejoin them was Bunny, with all of the Burgess kids. Who quickly started loading up with blasters. Bunny grinned, assuring him that 'they wanted to give Jack a decent work out' as he had so deftly worded it.  
The next was Sandy, who was followed by a 'were doomed but what the hell' troupe of spirits.  
Flow, Shady, Gale, Aspen, Clover and Lily were all there, as well as a couple of their friends, who had Jack had met at some point or other over the last few months.  
Then came Tooth, followed by a troupe of armed and ready to go fairies, and a sighing, yet grinning Spectrum, who Tooth had whined at whilst fluttering her eyelashes, for so long he had not had the heart to say no.  
Then there were the yeti's, and the elves...  
So, they had a several hundred strong force, which included the 'In General Mode' Dream Maker, a spirit from every season, the spirit of rainbows, a shadow jumper who had gone Rambo mode, a Warrior Queen Mode Toothiana, a six foot Russian with swords and a pink Pooka.  
How could they possibly lose to a single spirit guardian?

Said Spirit was currently whistling and secretly setting everything up over the other side of a high snow-bank he had formed.  
Various snowball cannons had been set up, and were being manned by ice drones who would simply press the lever when needed after Jack dropped snow into the cannons.  
He had also dressed himself up in Snow camouflage gear, and was now wearing loose combats, a white vest top and a snow camo jacket, along with white snow boots.  
He had encased his staff in cloudy ice, so it would bend in with the snow, and had spray painted over all of his weapons as well.  
He also streaked pale blue and white paint across his cheeks-because why the hell not- and was now planning his method of attack.  
He could use the element of surprise at first, but from his staking out of the Pole, they had a pretty good force.  
So... He would have to be on the lookout for dreamsand...  
Would have to steer clear of shadows...  
Would have to be constantly aware of the ice, and of any shifts in the wind which could indicate Gale was levitating leaves and what not...  
As well as watching his feet for clovers that might spring up...  
Oh, not to mention the fact that a rainbow so close would dazzle him for a few seconds... Which was why he grabbed a pair of white, UV tinted goggles which would protect against it.  
Thus prepared, he finally strapped on his belt, slotting fully loaded blasters- no cookie dough this time, but paint ball ammunition, which he could quickly reload- into the slots, as well as strapping two belts of ammo across his chest-with white ammo belts and paint of course- before strapping on two thigh holsters and clicking in two adjustable blasters, which would fold out to make snowball blasters.  
Then he slotted his staff onto his back, and swung a long distance paint-ball rifle, complete with target gauge, onto his back.  
Oh yes, he'd have the element of surprise...  
_

Pitch Black hmm'ed, as he petted one of his nightmares...  
Should he? Shouldn't he? Should he? Shouldn't he?  
Then he slowly smirked.  
Well, if he was going to get Sanderson back, he might as well annoy the rest of the guardians, aside from Jack as it happened, into the bargain.  
With that thought, he grabbed a bag of his specially prepared dust-which he had spent months working on and adjusting- before he span into the shadows and vanished.  
_

The four guardians, at the Pole, surveyed their forces.  
Tooth had just finished explaining the rules of this particular battle, and was now busy with giving her fairies 'the look'... They were not, by any means, to abandon their allies for favour of Jack based on anything he could say or wear.  
Just before the stroke of the hour, they all head out, positioning themselves as they had agreed and readying weapons.  
As soon as the sunlight touched the horizon, North gave a yelp as he was shoved back a little.  
He looked down to his armour, where there was now a splatter of white paint, and cursed.  
"He must be sniping! Scan the area!"  
But no matter how hard they looked, they could not see him.  
Bloody ninja blending in skills... Bunny cursed, before he himself got hit with a splatter of paint and ended up falling back onto Sandy, who exploded into a shower of golden sand, before trickling out and glaring at the Pooka, right before he likewise got blasted.  
Then a series of shots rang out, pinging off of the elves armour-which consisted of pots and saucepans on their heads, cheese-graters and trays tied around their small bodies, and rolling pins and other cookie utensils jabbed into their belts or in their hands.  
This was the push everyone else needed to throw up their defences, and, just as suddenly as it had started, the volley or ridiculously well aimed shots stopped.

Jack grinned as he poured energy into a small block of thin ice.  
He had recently perfected them so that they would only blast out snow-if he so wished- and he didn't want to make things _too _dangerous...  
He then grabbed his bow, using ice to freeze the, primed to explode, ice cube onto the end of an arrow, before doing the same thing with several others.  
Then he grabbed his bow, and sent one flying down, resting at the feet of Shady.

Shady reacted instinctively.  
"GET DOWN! SHE'S GONNA BLOW!"  
They were on the floor, ducking, just as it exploded with enough force to send a hail of snow over anyone within a ten foot radius.  
Those who had been pelted with snow groaned as they got up, and North was just about to order their first manouvre, when another arrow fell to the ground at his feet... followed by another, a bit further along the line... and another... and another...  
The dozen grenades exploded within a second of each other, and the shock-wave, and snow, threw them all back, creating a mess of limbs, though Jack had made sure not to let the Burgess kids get hurt... North blinked as he remembered how careful Jack was around them, and he got an idea...  
Tooth was calling out an order even as she got to her feet.  
"OKAY! EVERYONE TO THEIR DESIGNATEDPARTIES!"  
The huge group immediately split up.  
North, Shady and Flow was one group, with one of Flow's friends, along with Jamie, Clause and Sophie. Not to mention several dozen elves.  
Bunny, Gale, Shady and Lily were another group, with more of the kids from Burgess, including Cupcake, along with some elves and Yeti's, as well as Baby Tooth and her small squad of ninja fairies, as they had dubbed themselves.  
Tooth was with Spectrum, Clover and Aspen, as well as two of Aspen's friends, including Snowden, as well as the majority of her fairies and a couple of dozen Yeti's.  
Sandy, they decided, worked better if he didn't have to worry about hitting his own team with allies, and was with the rest of the Fairies, Elves and Yeti's.  
All four teams split up, positioning themselves over a hundred feet away form each other, with the reasoning that Jack couldn't focus on all of them.  
North called over to the other teams.  
"We must find him! We are already having been taken down, and we do not know so much as his location!"  
"We were aware of that, mate..." Bunny replied, before blinking and raising an eyebrow as he heard something from one of the snow banks.  
Focusing in on it, he began to hone in on where he thought Jack was.

Jack cursed as Bunny started to use his ears to try and track him down, and ceased all movement and preparation, simply peering over the edge of the snow-bank, or rather, through the snow, seeing as he had covered himself in a thin layer on top of the bank and using his binoculars to see what was going on.  
Hmm... The splitting up manouvre was good... Very good. No doubt Tooth and Shady had come up with it.  
And all of the groups were seemingly evenly matched. But how to get them all without harming the burgess kids? He hadn't thought they would be here, so all of his plans were based on a spirit's level of destruction. If he could separate them maybe... Get them back to the Pole...  
Hmm...  
He blinked as he got an idea, and waited till Bunny had finally given up on hearing him, before he grabbed his bamboo pipe and played a very high noted tune at a pitch that would only be audible to the fairies.  
Baby Tooth, who it was aimed at, recognised the 'Need to Talk' tune, and carefully slipped away, heading for the main entrance to the Pole.  
She smiled as Jack leapt into view, having used a combination of skiing, running, rolling and flying to skirt everyone, and he whispered to her, quickly and quietly.  
"I have a few plans which would be dangerous around the kids. Could you get Tooth here? Only for a few moments."  
She nodded,snapping a salute, and Jack grinned as he realised the perfect thing to keep the kids inside the Pole... If he could convince Tooth...  
_

Tooth groaned as she let Baby Tooth lead her off, around the corner and to the Front door, before she spotted Jack and opened her mouth. Before she could say anything, however, his hand was covering her mouth and he grinned.  
"Short conversation which involves the interests of both sides... I don't want the kids getting hurt. And with some of the things, like the rainbows, they don't have a spirits resistance."  
Tooth was about to complain that they would be perfectly safe when Jack grinned, and used his greatest weapon.  
Tooth had long since become immune to his Puppy eyed look, but this was no mere Puppy eyed look.  
The sheer innocence and vulnerable-ness and cuteness and wide-eyed-ness and sheepish grin...ness combined into a look which had her melting.  
"Pretty Please Tooth...?"  
She found herself nodding, completely hypnotised, and slowly floated off, humming and dancing and grinning to herself, spreading the word that the kids were wanted in the Pole...  
Jack quickly animated the forces he had inside the Pole-they were going to be a little surprise gift, but they worked better for this- and dozens of snowmen started moving, throwing snow everywhere.  
That should keep the kids busy for a couple of hours as they defeated them...  
He quickly flew back to his post, and grinned as he took in the group that had all come together again.  
Brilliant...

North blinked at Tooth as the kids took off.  
"What was that for Tooth?"  
"Preeeetttyyyyy... Sweet ickle sweet tooth had wide eyes... So innocent and cute and adorable and-"  
The spirits in the group, aside from Spectrum, winced and Shady gave a shocked yet terrified exclamation.  
"Oh no... The eyes..."  
North blinked.  
"But we built up a resistance to the eyes-"  
"No... I mean the Eyes of Doom... The Gaze of Eternal damnation...It is a weapon that is, as yet, undefeated. Rumour has it that he used the look on Pitch and it worked..."  
They all gulped at that, before Bunny's ears suddenly pricked up and he motioned for quiet.  
"Guys? I can hear something over there."  
He gestured to a huge snow-bank, which suddenly started to rise up, before blasting itself at them.  
They were buried in a blanket, and the few minutes it took for them all to dig themselves out was enough for Jack to get into position.  
Aspen was the first to notice what was facing hem, and he shouted a warning.  
"CANNONS!"  
Sure enough, as if Jack had been waiting for that signal, he sent streams of snow into the cannons, which started firing.  
Huge snowballs exploded around them, and they started returning fire with their own cannons, which fired Cookie dough.  
Jack had also set up a tennis ball firing machine to fire snowballs, and let the wind spin it to aim at the others.  
That particular shoot out lasted nearly twenty minutes, and he had to give an approving grin as the fairies and elves started swooping past-the fairies flying normally and the elves in small planes- and dropping paint, glue, glitter and feather bombs, before Jack was forced to duck to the ground and throw his goggles up as Spectrum used the morning sunlight to create a rainbow, which span around them as a kind of shield.  
Jack cursed.  
Now he was firing blind...  
But it gave him a chance to play another little prank...  
He dove into a nearby snow-bank, and tunnelled his way under the ground to the where the others were standing, masking the sound of his movements with the vibrations from the cannons.  
He then slowly rose up, grinning as he realised that he was directly behind them all, and silently hoisted himself out before deftly gluing a scrap of paper onto Bunny's back.  
Then he did the same for every elf he could reach, each of the notes saying the same thing, and waited for someone to notice him.  
After a couple of minutes, however, he got bred, and cleared his throat, whistling for attention.  
"Might want to improve your defences." He said, when they all span and jumped back from him, crashing into each other and toppling like dominoes, before he shot them a snappy salute and did a back-flip, vanishing back into his snow tunnel which he quickly half ran half crawled through, collapsing it as he went.  
He groaned, however, when the tunnel started to collapse in front of him, and realised that Bunny must have tracked the sounds.  
Well, he thought, as he worked on digging himself out of the snow and tunnelling again, he had to give it to them That had been an impressive move...  
He shot out of the snow when he was back behind the cannons, and immediately pulled his binoculars out, scanning the opposing force. The rainbow had dimmed somewhat, as the sun had dimmed slightly beneath a cloud, and he could now see them all.  
He grinned as the results of his little escapade started to cause chaos amongst their ranks.

Bunny blinked as one of the elves threw a snowball at him, before giggling. Then another did... Then another...  
He leapt back, wondering what on Moon had gotten into him, and Clover gasped.  
"BUNNY! TKE THE NOTE OFF YOUR BACK!"  
"What note?"  
"The one saying 'Make me a snow-pile.' Just how long was Jack there for?"  
"I don't know- GAH!"  
Bunny yelped as he fell over, having been pelted with dozens of snowballs, and tried to shake off the snow that the eves kept piling on him. He failed...  
He groaned as they finally stopped, before noticing a note on several of the elves back's.  
"GUYS! THE NOTES!"  
Too late.  
The elves caught sight of the notes on each other's back, all saying 'SNOWBALL FIGHT' and promptly started throwing snow at each other, the other elves joining in and soon creating a 100ft square area which nobody dared to enter.  
Shady blinked as he finally realised what Jack was up to.  
"He's trying to weaken our forces! No doubt he wants a Guardian Only show-down..."  
The guardians blinked, and the spirits cocked their weapons.  
"Well then," Spectrum said, "Let's make his life as difficult as possible in the meantime, shall we?"  
But he had no sooner said that when a very familiar figure span into existence in a cocoon of black sand, nodding a greeting to them all as he took in the scene.  
_

Pitch took in the scene and rolled his eyes.  
And these were the Guardians who had given him so much trouble before Jack?  
He nodded to them all, before honing in on the one he was here for.  
"Sanderson! FIELDS OF FLOWERS, SKIPPING AND BEST FRIENDS FOREVER T-SHIRTS!?"  
Jack butt in.  
"Yo Pitch. How's life as a Villain these days?"  
"Oh, can't complain... You don't mind me interfering with your little battle, do you?"  
"Oh, not at all." Jack replied, with a bow. "By all means, have at it."  
"Thank you. SANDERSON!"  
Everyone watched, astounded, as Pitch threw a bag of silvery coloured sand towards the golden-or rather, still multi-coloured- guardian, who tried, in vain, to dodge it, before it cocooned him, finally clearing to reveal a rainbow coloured sand... Kitten.  
All was silent for a few moments, until Sand...cat? Meowed. Then promptly meowed again, pawing at his neck and looking excited.  
"MEOW MEOW MEEEEOW!"  
North blinked.  
"Oh, of course. By all means, be glad about the fact that you can make speech as opposed to current war predicament, da?"  
Sand-cat mewed again, before he sat down, stroking his whiskers and flicking his tail, and then curled up for a snooze.  
Jack was in hysterics, and finally managed to gasp out,  
"How... how long will he... be like that?"  
"Only 12 hours."  
"Oh... Oh moon it's... pure genius!"  
"... Thank you- Oh, in the name of all shadows, what is that!?"  
"Spectrum. His rainbow shield."  
"Ah... Hmm..."  
With a flick of his hand, a huge cloud of dream-sand covered the view of the sun, and the rainbow faded with no sunlight to uphold it.  
Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"Thank you."  
"Not at all. By all means, if there is anything I can do to, whist we are not battling over the fate of the world of course, to aid you in irritating the rest of the guardians, do not hesitate to ask. I find I rather enjoy the simple pleasure of seeing the shocked and bemused expressions on their faces."  
"I might take you up on that."  
With that, they shook hands and Pitch floated over to the sidelines, keeping the sun block up in place and shooting a smirk at the astounded Guardians, who were seriously re-evaluating their chances of winning this thing.  
The spirits were busy looking between the smirking Pitch, and grinning Jack and the astounded Guardians with expressions ranging from stifled amusement to utter shock, all aside from Spectrum who was pouting about his rainbow powers being next to useless now...  
But, in a small jab at vengeance, he sent a small blast of light at the still distracted Jack, and turned his camo jacket multi-coloured.  
Jack gasped when it did, and mentally face-palmed himself for letting his guard down.  
Great, now how could he sneak around in it?  
He shrugged it off, throwing it to the side and strapped his weapons back on over his vest top, giving a small grin as several of the fairies swooned.  
Okay, so he had gotten rid of the elves... Now for the Yeti's, Fairies and the spirits...  
This would be a proper Guardian showdown if he had to keep this war going all week...  
Now then... How to get the Fairies out of the game...?

Grinning, he brought his bamboo pipe to his lips and stared playing the Titanic film theme song in a pitch that only they could hear.  
He got about a dozen notes in before they started breaking.  
A couple of moments later, the first swooning casualties could be seen, and the others were, despite their best attempts, failing.  
By the time the others had got the idea to charge him and try and stop him, half of the fairies were already being held by Yeti's and the others were swooning.  
Jack groaned as he was forced to stop, and knew he had to start music again soon before they recovered.  
So, he leapt into the air and formed a xylophone and echo chamber from ice, and continued playing, this time Wind Beneath My Wings, getting the wind to soften the notes.  
At this ingeniously creative new style of music, and possibly combined with the fact that Jack's hair was now blowing in the breeze, and the fact that the fairies unanimously loved the song, it was the end of the line for them all, aside from Baby Tooth who had long since built up a resistance... hen again, even she was swooning faintly and had to perch on Tooth's shoulder, as Tooth herself was swaying and humming.  
The Guardians, and even Pitch, found they couldn't comment on the ludicrousness of using music as a weapon of war, seeing how effective it had been, and the yeti's all gulped as they realised it was their turn...

But not for a while, it would seem.  
The battle resumed, with the cannons and, seeing as they were now much closer together, blasters, and it was almost twenty minutes before Jack spied an opening for his next plan.  
Throwing several of his snow grenades he managed to knock everyone off balance for a few minutes, which was long enough for him to whip out a small book.  
One of the nearest Yeti's spotted the title, and word quickly spread.  
Jack's Cook Book...  
They had been hunting for it since the first time Jack had cooked, and had never found it... To have it dangled in front of them like this...  
As soon as Jack dropped it, Phil catching it, the others all started to pile on, solely for the chance to touch it...  
Bunny even had to grab the back of North's coat to stop him running over, and they all gulped as they realised what this meant.  
They had started this battle with it being a few hundred to one...  
In the space of a mere couple of hours, Jack had made it eleven to one... And they were really not liking those odds...

Jack grinned as he grabbed his fold out snow blaster and flipped it out, arming it, all in one fluent movement in the space of a couple of seconds.  
He shot them a grin, and motioned, clearly saying 'Come and get me then...' And they all shared looks.  
"Ah what the heck." Shady said, and started firing.  
The others were quick to follow, and Jack swiftly returned fire.  
It was several minutes full of leaping, ducking, diving, dodging, spinning, twirling, blasting and general battling before one of the spirits finally withdrew.  
Lily sighed as she fought her way out of the snow pile that came up to her neck, where the wind had swirled around the stream of blue snow Jack threw into the air before dumping it on her, before shouting her withdrawal and joining Sandy where he lay curled up on the snow.  
Gale and Clover were the next to fall, as they fell backwards into a it of soft snow that Jack had secretly created whilst battling, and pulled themselves out with shouts of personal surrender. Snowden followed, shaking snow out of his hair, followed by Aspen's other friend, Jez, and Flow's friend Rose.  
Aspen did the same, not too long afterwards, as his own ice slide was used against him to be a ramp for a huge mound of snow. By the time he had crawled out, Spectrum had joined the girls, and was sat dying their hair different colours.  
Shady joined them ten minutes later, still shaking snow from his hair as he dragged himself to the back and fell into an exhausted heap, muttering about 'bloody snow ninja's'.  
Upon realising that it was only then left, the guardians all grouped together, and Jack grinned.  
"Well, look at that. Looks like it's a Guardian showdown after all..."  
True, he had not come out of the battle unscathed, and his hair was dripping wet from where ice had been melted over him, his clothes had snow tumbling from them and his blasters were now every colour of the rainbow, but he was in much better shape than the rest of them.  
_

He whistled a short tune as the wind hoisted Sand-cat up, depositing him on Bunny's head and causing him to pull out some of Bunny's fur as he leapt to the ground.  
Bunny glared a the kitten, before rolling his eyes at how ridiculous the whole situation was.  
Then, without any warning, Sandy ran towards Jack, before starting to claw at him with his ickle diddle paws and biting onto his trousers, shaking them.  
It was, frankly, adorable.  
Jack rolled his eyes, before pulling Sand-cat up by the scruff of his neck, and pulling him up to head height.  
Sandy was still batting his paws at him, his little ears and whiskers and tail twitching, and Jack grinned, scratching his furry tummy.  
"Aww, who's a brave ickle kitty? Hmm? Who's a brave ickle kitty-cat..." He scratched him behind the ears, before grabbing a ball string from his trousers pockets-because he always seemed to have everything he would ever need, indeed, it ever failed to amaze everyone- and dangling it In front of Sandy.

"What's this? Hmm? You want the string? Do you want it?"  
Sandy started trying to get it, and Jack dropped it to the ground, letting the wind nudge it to make I move a little, before he let Sandy down next to it and grinned as he pounced on it, making everyone -though Pitch would deny it vehemently- aww a him as he got himself tangled up and messed around and started mewling and pawing at it, his little tail flicking backwards and forwards.  
Jack grinned as he flexed his fingers, and smirked.  
"One down, three to go..."  
Bunny sighed, sharing a look with Tooth, and he pulled out his sparring staff, flicking the switch which made it extend to it's full size.  
Tooth flexed her shoulders, and Jack raised an eyebrow, before dropping his other weapons to the floor, under Pitch's guard, and grabbing his own extendible, sparring staff, flicking it out.  
"Well, this should be interesting..."  
Everyone's eyes were drawn to the sparring trio.  
Jack ha his work cut out blocking Bunnys staff, as well as defending against the snowballs, paint bombs and movements of Tooth, and used a variety of fighting techniques and gymnastics, combined with sending streams of snow out everywhere, and eventually managed to trip Bunny up and bury him in a snow-pile.  
Tooth followed straight afterwards, and North blinked as Jack span back into an upright position, retracting his staff and slotting it back into it's holster, before swiftly slinging his other weapons back on, leaving his actual staff out and spinning it idly.  
Jack cocked his head at him, as if considering, and North shrugged.  
"I have nothing."

Jack shrugged, and pulled a blanket of snow from beneath North's feet, wrapping it over him and rolling him into a huge snowball.  
He then released it, North inside, to roll down a hill where it crashed into Bunny and Tooth who had just escaped the snow-piles, creating a mess of snow and tangles limbs.  
They groaned as they managed to disentangle themselves, North spinning and walking dizzily, and Tooth groaned, her Warrior Queen mode finally deciding that enough was enough, and caught the white handkerchief Spectrum threw to her, throwing it to the ground.  
"You win."  
Pitch clapped slowly, before he got up, stretching, and took away the sun shield, nodding to Jack.  
"Impressive show Frost." With that, he span into a twirl of black sand and vanished.  
Jack rolled his eyes  
"Dramatic much..."  
He suddenly yelped as he leapt out of the way of Phil, who was holding the recipe book above his head, in front of him, and was running as fast as he could whilst yodelling his head off. Dozens of elves were on his tail, all yelling war cries and waving saucepans and wooden spoons and rolling pins, clearly after the book.  
He sighed as he sauntered over to the others.  
"Ah, I love the smell of chaos and victory in the mornings... Hey, Spec? Turn my jacket back the right colour please?"  
He grinned as the spirit did so, and shrugged it on.  
"Thanks-"  
They all jumped as a sudden crash echoed form the Pole, and Jack blinked, wincing.  
"Oh yeah. Erm... Oops?"

Jack winced again as he walked in to find a scene of destruction.  
The snowmen were in full retreat, and there were snow mounds all over the workshop.  
The kids had tied scraps of fabric around their foreheads and were blasting away at the snowmen, and each other.  
Immediately, the elves that had followed them in joined in, and Jack blinked as Sophie came running at him.  
"Jack!"  
He crouched down, wondering what was wrong, only to be met with a sly smile... And a dozen snowballs being pelted at him.  
He yelped as he was throw back into North, who promptly fell over, and he rolled off of the huge guardian, grinning.  
"Right then."  
It was another half an hour before the resulting snowball fight ended, Jamie and Jack-having teamed up- winning in the end, and the Burgess kids head back, the spirits doing the same.  
Jack grinned as North sighed at the mess, before shrugging.  
"One, you started this. Two, I promised Fool I'd let him know as soon as I, and I quote, 'Whupped your asses'. See ya!"  
He flew out of a window, whistling, and North sighed, turning, only to find that Tooth had made her excuses and head off to catch up on her work, Bunny had vanished into a tunnel and Sandy the Kitten was rolling around on the floor, tangles up in wrapping paper and ribbon and generally being adorable.  
Typical... Okay, so he had started it, but still... North sighed, arranging the clean-up.  
Maybe he would think twice next time?  
_

Jack was grinning as he left Fool's, only to be met with a crowd of fairies, all with grins and _'mess with us at your own risk' _attitudes.  
He yelped as he was pounced upon and dragged to the Palace, where he was faced with a grinning Baby Tooth, who snapped her fingers.  
He was promptly shoved inn front of a plan, on a table, and he blinked, as he tok it in, before grabbing a pencil and changing a couple of things.  
"You guys sure about this?"  
Baby Tooth nodded, and he gave a soft whistle.  
"Talk about Revenge of the Tooth Fairies... I'll just go hide then?"  
Baby Tooth nodded again, giving Jack a high five- well, high finger- and he took off, already planning where to hide, at the Pole, which would keep him safe but also give him a decent viewpoint.  
Huh... Who knew that Fairies could be so devious?

* * *

**Me: Teeheehee... Leading into another request there, which will take up the next chapter as well as maybe a couple more requests... And a couple of things to round this arc off properly. So yeah, a busy chapter next :D  
Anyway, what did you all think of this chapter? I know it wasn't the best battle scene... But it _was_ nearly 6000 words long, and I hope you enjoyed it anyway- VADER! WHERE ARE YOU SNEAKING OFF TO!  
Vader: *winces but gives innocent smile* Nowhere...  
Me: *taps foot with arms crossed and raised eyebrow*  
Vader: *holds out for a few seconds then cracks* OKAY!I CONFESS! I'M GOING TO BUY MORE SKITTLES!  
Me: *shakes head with sigh* Who'd have thought it. Mr 'Always in Black' likes tasting the rainbow... *sighs and gestures to the door* Go on then.  
Vader: *whoops and runs from the room*  
Me: *blinking and sensing a disturbance in the force, seemingly centred on the fact that Vader just left to buy skittles* Much trouble do I sense in the Force... *freezes* Like Yoda did I just speak- NO! INTO YODA I AM SEEMING TO TURN-! GAAAAHHHHHHHHH!  
*run in frantic circles, ranting about 'much amusement at my expense the force is having'***

_**Half an Hour Later...**_

**Vader: *enters eating skittles and sees me still running in circles* Raven?  
Me: LIKE YODA MY SPEECH HAS TURNED- GAH! HELP ME YOU MUST! NOOOOOOOOO! _VADER! HELP!  
_Vader: *blinks* Oh no... The force is creating a Yoda Mode around you... It should only last for twelve hours or so Raven-  
Me: TWELVE HOURS THIS SHALL LAST? INSANE BY THEN I SHALL GO! NEEEYAAAAAAAAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHHH! MAKE IT STOP YOU MUST!  
Vader: *blinking as Yoda enters the room, skipping and leaving a trail of breadcrumbs* Good morning this is, yes?  
Me: YODA! DEAD YOU SHALL BE WHEN CATCH YOU I SHALL!  
Yoda: Hmm, Yoda Mode do I sense in the force.  
Me: NOT WORTH LIVING WILL YOUR LIFE BE WHEN CATCH YOU I DO! *starts running after him as he runs from the room, yelling about how much of a 'Crazed Authoress is she'*  
Vader (left alone in room): *shrugs and continues to eat skittles* Much insanity there is... *grins* Till next chapter then, Younglings.**

* * *

**RobynSmith-** Ouch... I hate camping when it's wet.  
And no problem at all! Im just glad everyone enjoyed it so much :D And it was quite surprising how many people wanted Pitch to team up with Jack, Lol :D I had actually had it partly written when the requests started coming in, so our minds must all be in sinc or something, Lol It was weird... O_o  
And skittles? *sigh* Okay then, Lol :D  
And yeah, I just looked over it. I have quite a few to get done, but I like the sound of it... Has Merlin's magic already been revealed? Might be funny if he was to do all the creepy things and pretend he knew nothing of it, and everyone else could pretend to panic because not even the strongest magic user in the world knows what's going on?

**M-** Haha, thank you. At east someone understands why it is a bad idea to ruin my cape... *growls at Vader, who had the grace to whistle and innocently leg it from the room*  
Anyways, Im glad you enjoyed the chapter! And Jack says thanks, and that he'll kick their butts good for you all :D  
Or rather, he just did... So was their enough butt kicking for you? Lol :D

**candle dark –** Thanks! And I had insanity on it's highest setting, Lol :D  
And if you like Pitch being in there, I hope you enjoyed how much of a role he had in this chapter?  
And sooo... Was t one of the awesomest things you've read? Lol :D  
Hope you enjoyed!

**MEC-** Haha, yep :D He could totally take over the world if he wanted to :D  
And you go girl! Show hi why it's a bad idea to mess with a prankster, Lol :D  
And yeah... I know I missed a few, but I don't have many chapter left, so I'm not sure...  
I could do another chapter solely for the footnotes, like I did with the Yoda hunt a while ago, if you like? And could bring the Looney Tunes and few others back :D What other Jack's were you thinking of?  
And it is indeed cute, Lol :D Oh, don't put Vader... *sigh*  
Hope you enjoyed the war!


	52. This and That

**Me: Okay guys, first of all, sorry for the delay. I was lost in thought... It's unfamiliar territory, you see. Yeah, I think that much :)  
Anyway, thanks to funnypal1234, insanereader3 and Chloe5281 for the faves and/or follows. Thanks for faving me as an author as well Chloe! Welcome to 1-in-5 Airlines! Please enjoy your flight, Lol :D  
And second of all, thanks to Killuaxme, an awesome reviewer, I received the location of Vader's Diary... I won't bore you with the details of how I got it, but I now have it! MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! If you wish to know how I got it, just let me know and I will tell you all about how I managed the impossible... :D But I'll have to encrypt the messages, because Vader is going frantic here...  
Vader: RAVEN! WHERE IS MY DIARY!?  
Me: *calling on my acting skills* Diary? You have a diary? And you _lost_ it? You know what I'd do to get my hands on that?  
Vader: *throws arms up in frustration and storms off*  
Me: That amused me far too much... Oh, hey Daffy! You're not still mad at me for throwing you out of the window are you...?  
Daffy: *glares, helps himself to juice, and leaves again*  
Me: Okay then. Oh, right... Boy, do I have a treat for you guys. I spent the last few hours, with Vader, tracking down Ice Black... He's been irritating me you see. And now we have planned the best vengeance! Well, It was going to be quite a light vengeance, but then he insulted me, insulted Vader, iced over my skittle room and burnt my cape. So now I'm in all out vengeance mode...  
Oh, and this chapter is kinda split up into a few little mini stories which are the result of various requests which would not have been long enough for a full chapter... Hope you enjoy them!**

* * *

**Section 1, Fairy Vengeance**

Baby Tooth grinned as she looked through the binoculars, borrowed from Jack, and watched Sandy head into the Pole. She had not forgiven him for sending them to sleep with dream-sand that one time, and the pranks that she and her fellow fairies had planned would be mainly focused on him.  
Jack's help had been invaluable, with setting things up-seeing as they were too small to do some of it- and he had given her a high five, before giving them all tiny strips of fabric and pot of face paint and going to hide on the beams in the workshop.  
Now, they had scraps of black fabric tied around their foreheads and black streaks on their cheeks.  
As soon as they were sure that the four other guardians were inside, they all rose and flew towards the Pole.  
They branched off, some of them surrounding the window and the others going to block the door to the study where they would all be.  
As soon as they were all in position, she gave a chirp, and they attacked...  
Balloons that were as big as them were hoisted up and dropped on the astounded Guardians, who were too shocked and slow to dodge.  
It was only a matter of seconds before they were all drenched in the weird gooey substance.  
It took them several seconds to be able to react, and they quickly started to wipe it off... But it was too late.  
They managed to wipe all of the goo off, but they were now walking rainbows.  
Like the mixture Jack had used to turn Sandy's sand multi-coloured, this had been altered to turn everything different colours, and the four guardians were now completely covered in it.  
The fairies were all giggling as they flew away, and the guardians shared look.  
"Frostbite do you reckon?"  
North shook his head.  
"Repeat same trick? Not his style..."  
Tooth nodded.  
"Yeah plus Baby Tooth is more than capable of pulling something like this off... Looks like the fairies want to have a little fun..."  
That was not the limit of the fun they wanted to have. Jack gave them approving nods, and congratulated them when he next saw the Guardians, and rolled his eyes when they all dove on him, pinning him down, and put rainbow streaks in his fringe.  
Jack blinked as he saw it in the mirror. Huh... He actually kinda liked it...  
But even he was impressed and surprised by the Fairies next prank.

Jack whistled cheerfully as he flew in one of the windows at the Pole, only to be met with frantic yeti's and an eager Phil, who grabbed him, threw him over his shoulder, and carried him to North's office.  
Jack was wondering what on Moon could have got them so worked up as he opened the door, only to be given his answer.  
North peeked from behind his desk, where he had been hiding, and eyed the door.  
"Are they gone...?"  
"Are who gone?"  
"The fairies..."  
"... North? You okay?"  
North stood up, and glared at him, arms crossed, as if daring him to laugh.  
Jack was too stunned to laugh.  
He had no idea where they had gotten Fool's hair removal cream from, but using it to _get rid of North's beard_? GENIUS!  
He tried to keep his laughter contained. He really did. Bit the inside of his lip till it almost bled and everything... But it was hopeless.  
A single laugh burst forth, and that was it. He was lost to the hysterics.  
In all fairness, Tooth was left in a similar state as soon as she saw him, and Bunny was not much better.  
But Sandy's arrival had them laughing even more.

The Golden-now, once again, multi-coloured- guardian entered with a deadly scowl on his face and glaring daggers at everyone.  
And his hair?  
Jack had to stumble form the room for fear of death by laughter.  
Sandy's hair was now down to his feet!  
Jack had no idea how they managed to get a hair growing spray to work on Sandy, but it was worth it...  
And it was better than anything even he could have thought of.  
Nd it wasn't over, not by a long shot.  
As if waiting for him to enter, a huge bag of hair clips and hair bands-all covered in butterflies and flowers- was thrown through the door.  
Tooth, still in hysterics, sobered up a the sight, and her look turned devious.  
Before Sandy could make his escape, Tooth had pounced on him and was now tying his hair into bunches, or plaiting it, or clipping it back, or curling it, or tying it up in various ways.  
Bunny was gripping his sides, still laughing no matter how much his sides hurt, and Jack started laughing again at the thunderous look on Sandy's face, before he pulled himself away and head for the kitchens, splashing his face with cold water to sober himself up, before he quickly head off back to his own home to pick something up.  
Now then... Where were those fairies...?

Apparently, he would not find them any-time soon and he sighed as he head back to the Pole, determined to look for them the following day, when he was suddenly surrounded by a sea of multi-coloured sand dolphins, who were being used to pull a chariot with Sandy in it, who was bouncing around and sending fireworks explosions everywhere.  
He created a huge air-horn and blasted it towards Jack, who dove out of the way of the chariot and blinked at the hyper looking Guardian.  
Suspicion entered his mind, and he head back to the Pole-after playing a game of dodge the dolphins- to have his suspicions proven.  
Dozens of empty cans of energy drinks were strewn everywhere, and he grinned as Baby Tooth rose form where she, and the other fairies, were lounging, watching Phantom of the Opera, and waved at him.  
_Those puppy eyes really work! Now Sandy is one a caffeine high...  
_Jack simply shook his head, awed, and pulled something form his hoody, handing it to her.  
It was one of two engraved dog-tags that Fool had given to him, in an official Spirit of Pranking' thing, which certified him as Fool's most dangerous opposition and showed him to be of the highest pranking order... He had shrunk it so that it was her size, and hung it around her neck, tucking his own back into his hoody.  
"So Prank Mistress BT, I would recommend a break whilst you go show Fool who's boss."  
There was a gasp from the doorway, and Jack grinned at Tooth, who had watched the whole exchange.  
"Jack?"  
"Hey, these were genius! Multi-coloured goo and Hair loss and Hair growth and a Caffeine High Sandy? I wouldn't have thought of or dared it. And all in the space of a day!? Majorly impressive stuff..."  
"But... Isn't that, what you just did, basically a surrender of sorts?"  
Jack shrugged.  
"Yep."  
Tooth blinked again, before she took off, yelling about the world coming to an end and the sky falling.

Jack gave BT a high five, and raised an eyebrow at her, failing at a stern expression.  
"This means a full truce with regards to any and all pranking matters. No Prank wars between us and through and through allies. Deal?"  
She nodded, shaking his hand-or rather, finger-before she went to rouse her team.  
_Come on! We have a Prank spirit to wage war with!  
_Jack grinned as they flew out, and slumped into a chair to finish watching the Phantom of the Opera.**  
**Now then, how could he make use of having a partner?  
_

**Section 2, Horror Movie Marathon**

Pitch sighed as Jack flew off, and slumped onto the ground.  
Damn the bloody persuasive Guardian...  
And damn him for agreeing to his next ridiculous plot...  
And damn his own inability to turn down the chance to terrify the rest of the guardians...  
Looks like his plans for world domination would have to be put on hold again...

Jack grinned as he selected the movie. He had been building up to this prank for a couple of months now, by making a movie night every week. One real reason really.  
To get them to lose their suspicion.  
It was even better when Tooth loved the idea and took charge of getting the others to the Pole every week. Their suspicions about this being something to do with Jack had been promptly squashed.  
So it was now the perfect time to put his plan into motion...  
Hmm... Aha! Arachnophobia! Classic... and Perfect. He hid his grin as he put it on, the others insistent that it wouldn't scare them at all...  
Oh, how they would soon regret those words...

Jack actually liked spiders, but it still creeped him out. And the guardians?  
Sandy had wrapped himself in a golden quilt and was peeking out from it, Tooth was buried in Bunny, peeking out from between her fingers, Bunny had his eyes closed most of the time, covering them with his ears, and North was hiding behind Jack at several points through the film.  
Honestly, it would have been funny enough on it's own, but with what he had planned for later? This would be great...  
It was just reaching it's end, when he saw a shadow in the corner of the room. Right on time...

The movie had just reached it's end, and Jack grinned as Tooth tried to turn the lights on, only to find the switch had tripped.  
She clicked it a couple more times, still creeped from the movie, and groaned.  
"North!? Fix the damned lights..."  
North head over, and blinked as the light turned on the first time.  
He rolled his eyes as he span around, only to scream, in a way that was far too similar to a girl of Sophie's age, and dive behind the Sofa.  
The other guardians all span, and the room dissolved into chaos as a huge black spider clambered across to them.  
They had moved into running in circles and bumping into each other, screaming every time that happened as well, before they finally noticed Jack, curled up on the sofa and clearly in hysterics.  
He was laughing so much, he couldn't so much as get a single word out, and his laughter was joined by another, form the doorway.

Pitch swept in, clicking his fingers to get rid of the huge spider, made form nightmare sand, and gave Jack an approving nod.  
You were right, Frost. This is better than taking over the world... Did you see your faces?" He laughed again, causing Jack to erupt into another bout of giggles as the the other four finally got their heart rate back to normal and crashed to the floor, gasping at the lack of imminent danger.

Needless to say, that was the last time they let Jack choose the movie...  
_

**Section 3, Corrupting the Nightmares**

Jack grinned as him and Sandy snuck forward a bit further, and saw Pitch asleep and snoring. Brilliant...  
Jack signed to him.  
_You got the dream?  
Yeah... Just like you wanted.  
Perfect...  
_Jack caught the small bottle, and shrugged his hoody off, revealing his ninja outfit. Then he slowly crept forward, every so carefully, until he was behind the throne.  
Sandy was quick to knock out any Nightmares who pricked up, and Jack made it to Pitch without incident.  
With a nod form Sandy, he un-stoppered the bottle, and blew the sand at Pitch.  
Then he quickly, and silently, made his way form the lair, pausing only to make sure the sand was starting to work and to plant a camera.  
Then he and Sandy head back to the Pole, with an orb, and crowded around the screen the camera was linked to, with the other three guardians.  
And they promptly fell about laughing.

The dream they had given to Pitch nvolved rainbows, cotton Candy and Unicorns and fluffy bunnies and everything, and not only were Pitch's nightmares now looking a lot like AppleJack, Ranobow Dash and various other My Little Ponies, but there were cute little rabbits eating cotton candy hopping about as well as a rainbow... And, in the middle of it all, Pitch was in a sleep trance and was skipping about merrily.  
"Oh Moon," Jack managed to gasp, "Please tell me this is being recorded?"  
North nodded, smiling evilly.  
"Da. Ever since you set the Camera."  
They watched Pitch gambolling about a bit longer till the nightmare sad managed to get rid of the dream-sand's hold on him, and Pitch blinked at everything, in the few seconds till it vanished, then spotted he camera.  
"JACKSON OVERLAND FROST! I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS IF I HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE NEXT HUNDRED YEARS! THE SAME GOES FOR YOU SANDERSON!"  
Then the tape cut off, and the Guardians all took one look at each other before falling about laughing.

Totally worth it.  
_

**Section 4, Plane Crazy...**

Jack blinked as he span out of the way of a small plane. One that was clearly carrying no more than about ten people, and one that seemed to have had a malunction in one of the engines maybe?  
And it was spinning out of control.  
He span and flew down after it, cursing as he realised that the Pilot's were unconscious.  
Okay, why? Probably the rapid change in altitude or...  
Gah, he didn't know or care. How to get inside?  
Breaching the cockpit would create a problem with the... Unless...  
Letting instinct take over, he froze a section of the glass at the cockpit, making the glass inside the ice shatter, before he pushed himself through the malleable ice wall.

He quickly span the pilots away from the console, and took in all the schematics.  
Okay, one part of the engine had exploded... But he could still land it.  
Taking in the radar, he realised that it had been heading for an airfield not too far form here.  
True, he hadn't flown a plane in years, but it was hard to forget once you had learnt...  
He again let instinct take over, and felt his hands moving, flicking switches and dials and grasping the controls.  
He blotted out the screaming form the people in the back- About eight from what he could tell- and focused on the job.  
Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realised that it would make the news that a plane had landed without it's pilots... But who cared.

It took twenty nerve racking minutes, but the plane finally touched down on the tarmac, and Jack guided it to as smooth a stop as he could.  
After making sure everyone got off okay, he pressed himself through the ice and left the rest to the humans, before flying off, only stopping to aid a little with the fire, with some melted ice.

He groaned as he arrived back at the Pole a few hours later, to be met with four guardians who had raised eyebrows and grins.  
"You have something to do with that, Frostbite?"  
Bunny as gesturing to the TV, and Jack listened into the news broadcast.

_Not only was the plane landed safely, a feat that only an expert could have accomplished under the circumstances, but no-one was hurt aside form the two pilots, who were unconscious due to sudden changes in altitude. Then more notices started coming in. Iced over windows, to prevent pressure changes, no fingerprints on the controls, only a faint iced imprint, and then aid with putting out the fires... We have just received word that this fits with several cases from over the last half a century, where planes have made miracle landings.  
Is this a miracle? The act of a higher power? It certainly has scientists from all around the globe baffled..._

Jack tuned out, and turned to the guardians, shrugging.  
"What about it?"  
"Mate, first of all, we never knew you could fly a plane?"  
"Learnt a while ago. I was bor-"  
"Bored. Da, we know. But you saved many lived in past rescues Jack?"  
"I guess... But the humans have never suspected anything."  
"Hmm... I would not say that. Look."  
North led him to the main room, and Jack blinked at the increased amount of Blue dots on the huge Globe.  
The increased amount of his believers.  
"Huh... Looks like kids watch the news after all..."

And they did. He was attacked by a mob of cheering kids when he popped into Burgess later that day, and it was the same at the Orphanage, where he was also pulled into a hug by Ruth.  
All in all, a rather interesting day, he mused, as he drifted off to sleep, only to be thrown into a dream about dolphins, rainbows and Sugar high fairies...  
Damn it Sandy...

* * *

**Me: Sooo... What did you think? Any particular faves form those four? Any you didn't like? I know that the plane one wasn't based on actual possible physics and shizzle, but let's just embrace the magic, eh? And I know some were very short. almost drabble length, but I wanted to at least attempt some of the requests.  
Anyways... I promised you vengeance? Here it is... *gestures to Ice Black*  
Ice Black: *dressed in a pink showgirls outfit, with extra feathers and high heels, which his hair up in little bunches... Right outside the Avengers Headquarters.*  
Vader: *hands me a camera* Here you go. We got the photo's you wanted.  
Me: Perfect. The outfit for all the times he insulted me, and this for when he insulted you...  
Vader: What are you going to do with those photo's?  
Me: *grins* You'll see... Nobody insults me second in command but me... Keep an eye on him for me! *vanishes*  
Vader: *grins* With pleasure. *starts spinning him with the force, then gins even wider as Tony appears* Why, hey there Tinman! Long time no see!  
Tony: *nods suspiciously* Where's the crazy authoress?  
Vader: *hoists Tony up and spins him around as well, making him join Ice Black* Now, that was not a very nice thing to say... Hey Hulk!  
Hulk: Vader annoy Puny Girl-Acting Spirit and Tinman?  
Vader: Yup. You enjoying the show?  
Hulk: Hulk approve. Is fun sight.  
Me: *spins back into view* Hey all!  
Vader: That was quick.  
Me: Yeah, well. The editor of The Guardian, you know, the spirit paper? He's an old friend and always puts anything I give him in the next edition. Oh, and I also got the guy who does Raven Mad, the newsletter I send out each week to every character I know in all the fandoms? That's all done and ready to publish too. Pop Tart here won't be able to show his face in public for a loooong time. *Evil, smug grin*  
Vader: I like it when you're evil. It's always fun.  
Me: Why thank you! Anyways, We'd better go guys. Ya know, things to do, places to go, people to see... Chaos to cause. The usual. See ya! Oh, and don't forget to ask if you want to hear of how I got Vader's Diary...  
Vader: *just out of earshot* What?  
Me: Nothing! See ya guys!**

* * *

**AllieSnow-** That should be the Spirit Worlds Motto, Lol :D 'NEVER UNDERESTIMATE JACK FROST'  
And I've already decided against a Birthday Chapter, as it would turn too angsty. I like the fairy idea, but I think that I have already set the Tooth Fairies up in that position... If it had been earlier in the fic I would have, but I think it's too late for Jack to reveal them now...  
And huh... Could be interesting. It won't fit with this fic, Im afraid, but I would gladly do a short fic based on the whole Vampire Hunter thing as a seperate fic, if you'd like? I really like the idea, and I'm accepting a few requests at the moment, though it may not be out for a while...  
Just let me now in a review :D

**candle dark-** Haha, thanks :D Im glad you enjoyed! And hmm... A kitten named Sandy would be kind of awesome, Lol :D And that's why I ended it there... I don't think they could have taken much more, Lol :D

**MEC-** Im glad your brother has surrendered, Lol :D And Im glad you enjoyed the skittles and Sandy-Cat :D They seemed to be most people's fave things in the chapter to be honest :D And Yay! I am Finally Free from Yoda mode! Though fun it was for a short time, confess shall I... Lol :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter too!

**M-** Sandy says thanks, though he never intends to become one ever again... Apparently, it's embarrassing to have fallen into an ice cold bath because someone was teasing him with catnip... *innocent grin and whistle* And all id well with the force now. Free from Yoda Mode am I, though enjoy it at times did I, Lol :D And Vader has now moved on to tic-tacs... *sigh* Ah well :D At lest he's not complaining about tasting the rainbow... Though he does mention refreshing little lifts all the time now :D

**RobynSmith-** Glad you enjoyed the ending, and I was kinda out of pranks, which was why there was not so many in the chapter.  
And okay :D I have a few things to finish off, but I'm planning on writing it as soon as I can,and I'll let you know as soon as I do in this fic :D  
And hope you enjoyed this chapter :D


	53. A Ninja's Shadow

***START OF IMPORTANT SHIZZLE***

**Me: Okay guys, first things first... I have just read a fic called Drakened Waters, by Lunrav14 (a reader of this fic) and I was shocked to see how few reviews and faves etc it had got. Its a great fic, guys, and she has clearly put a lot of skill and effort into it, so I would definitely recommend you go and check it out! Keep sharing the RotG love peoples! *hugs*  
Right, second of all... This is for those of you who wanted a feast of Ninja!Jack, as well as those who asked for something else to be revealed about our favourite Guardian of fun, as well as some Brotherly bonding between Bunny and Jack... Combine those together and... Well... here you go :D And I had a lot of fun writing it :D  
**

***END OF IMPORTANT SHIZZLE***

**Okay, and third... I have been really weirded out by some of the things I have read in Vader's Diary... Ahem, let me list some of them for you...  
Entry No.4, _'I dreamed of dancing with Barney the Dinosaur last night... We were waltzing... Then he turned into a giant cupcake. I wonder what the force is trying to tell me?'_  
(Me, Err... That you had no childhood and that you should get a snack?)  
Entry No.7, _'You ever wanted to meet Barbie, Diary? Neither have I.'  
_(Me, And the point of writing that was...?)  
Entry No.16, _'Hmm... Cookies.'  
_(Me, Okay, so we had just had a cookie war, and yes, Cookies are fascinating... But you do not spend hours contemplating them! Unless you are debating a new recipe... *face palm at the sheer moronic-ness of my second in command sometimes*)  
Entry No. 23, '_That Doctor Chap seems alright. I wonder if he knows of a land of Rainbow Ponies and Rainbows? Its always been a secret wish of mine to visit one... Hmm... Id have to make sure the trees were made of Candy Floss too. By the Force, I'm glad this is never going to fall into Raven's hands...'_  
(Me, Mmmmmm... Candy Floss. Oh, and it's fun to cause a war in a land of rainbow ponies... But trust me, you do not want Applejack for an enemy... Oh, and yeah... A really good thing, eh Vader *evil smirk*)  
Entry No. 34, '_Huh... 34 entries already. And all in the space of a few weeks... My life really has a lot of weird shizzle going on in it. Oh Force, I just said Shizzle. CURSE YOU TO THE DARK SIDE RAVEN!'_  
(Me, First of all, too true... Some very weird shizzle... And second? Already there Vader. They had cookies... Though I'm actually a double agent, so SHHHH!)  
Entry No. 56 (I skipped some, because they were all sappy and gooey about how much he luuurves his son and how proud he is and all that cute Daddy Vader stuff he denies so much. Seriously, it was soooo sappy it wasn't even funny...) 'HA! RAVEN GOT THROWN INTO ANOTHER FANDOM VERSE TODAY!'  
(Me, Wait.. what? No I haven't... And that entry is dated today!)  
*throws diary into secret compartment in throne, and blinks as portal opens up.* Oh... Crap on a Cracker. *sighs as I'm sucked into some random fandom verse... Thinking that there are perfectly good doors to said fandom-verses, in the corridor just outside...***

**Vader: Haha! *entering room* I have managed it! FINALLY! A BREAK! I wonder where I sent her to... *scans tracking beacon and face falls* Oh... Oh... Blast me to Bermuda... Err... Just enjoy the chapter guys, and I'll get her back before she can learn too much about... *gulp* Wand-less Magic. Yep, that's right. I've sent her to Camelot. From the BBC Merlin series. Right into the bloody Tavern... Right next to Gwaine... *sighs and ties to get the portal back up and running*  
**

* * *

North sighed as he threw the paper down on his desk.  
The front page of 'The Guardian' was all about the return of a very familiar name.  
The Shadow, as he had been dubbed by the entire spirit world, was someone who broke into some of the most heavily fortified places in the spirit world, simply to leave a note saying 'Mischief Managed' (and, over the last fifteen years, a tiny human spy camera, with his entire journey to this goal recorded on it, clearly designed to help them improve their security).  
And he had been doing so for just under a century.  
Banks, places full of famous pieces of architecture and art... Moon, even Mother Nature's outhouse, much to her amusement, had been struck.  
There had been only one glimpse of this figure which someone had managed to snap with a camera, and it was blurred at best. A blur of a black shadow. Literally.  
You could just make out that it was a humanoid shape, and was dressed all in black. He blended do well that, at first, people had thought it was a shadow. He, they knew it was a he, because he had told them so in one of his first notes, had been off the radar for almost five years now, but last night, he had tested himself against the grand spirit bank, which boasted the greatest security, both conventional, human and magical, and he had won.  
The note, saying Mischief Managed, was found that morning on the back wall of the Innermost Vault.  
With another message.

_'Let's make it a one-hundred year special, eh? And a Grand Finale.  
Shadow'_

The message was clearer, he was going to do something big for his hundredth year anniversary, and he was also quitting the game.  
Outwardly, people were pleased. Inwardly? Well, lets just say that he was an idol to half the spirit world and a menace to the rest.  
North sighed as he left his study, heading for the main, huge, meeting room, having called a meeting of all the Guardians and Prominent spirits, to discuss the Shadow.

He took his seat, between Tooth and Bunny, Sandy hovering overhead and Jack lounging on one of the beams.  
Around the rest of the table were arrayed a lot of spirits.  
Fool, who had quite a stake in the news about the prankster/somewhat criminal, was sat between Cupid-who always came to random meetings- and the head of the largest bank. The two other bank owners were next in line, and Mother Nature, though see had not been able to come, had sent a message saying she really had no problem with someone trying to make a little fun for the Spirit World.  
To be fair, North thought he was brilliant... Though he was annoyed that he had also been hit, about twenty years before and was wondering why no name turned up at the top of naughty list every time The Shadow made a move. Maybe because he never broke, damaged or stole anything?  
Either way, Jack was always at the top... It was almost a running joke with them now, that Jack refused to be anything but the best... Of the worst... If that made any sense at all, which it kinda did yet didn't. Anyway, North thought, throwing aside thoughts of the naughty list and focusing on the meeting, More important things to think about...  
Sandy found the whole thing with The Shadow amusing, and was actually a rather big fan, and Tooth was only mildly disapproving.  
Bunny, however, wasn't happy with the Shadow and held a grudge from about half a century ago.  
He had once, accidentally most spirits believed, contaminated an entire decade's worth of Bunny's special edible paints, so he had had to compromise and do much blander eggs. And he was still sore about it.  
Cupid was hoping to be able to shoot the Shadow with an arrow, and snag him for herself... Or she had been, until Mother Nature had had a stern conversation with her._  
_And the rest of the seats were filled with spirits who owned the most important and secure places in the spirits world, and loved the guy for helping them test their security.  
The keepers of the four seasons palaces, the owners of the museums of priceless art pieces and memoirs from lost human and spirit era's, the keeper of the map vault, with maps of all of the older ancient preserved places, such as Atlantis, and people who had placed ridiculous amounts of security on their dwellings solely to make themselves a target for the Shadow, in an attempt to catch sight of him. But they had all been visited prior to this, and there was only one person present who had not been visited.  
The old spirit was pondering about that.  
He had, arguably, the most secure place in the spirit world, and was the keeper of the oldest and most valuable set of perfect gemstones in the world. A Topaz, Aquamarine, Amethyst, Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire, and, pride of place, a Diamond, the seven _most valuable _gemstones, all in the centre of the most secure complex the greatest security firms could create with their combined minds, as well as some twists that the spirit, Opal, had put in place herself.  
There was no doubt in anyone's mind that this was the place the Shadow had in mind, and they quickly got to talking about additional security...  
Namely the Guardians, and the Yeti's and Fairies and dream-sand creatures, patrolling the place. All aside from Tooth and Jack. Tooth because she had an overload of work, and Jack because, well... Most of the other spirits were afraid he would be influenced by The Shadow.

Jack snorted as they left, and took off, promising to be there the following night to see them off, before flying to his place.  
He subtly made sure he was not being watched or followed, and went to the wardrobe in his room, clicking on a specific spot on one of the panels, and watching as the back panel slid away.  
He squeezed inside, and let himself fall through the space in the wall to a small room, which was hewn into the rock below, behind the store rooms on the bottom floor, and had various things hung up on the walls.  
Jack opened a case, and grinned as he pulled out the black, body hugging, ninja outfit, complete with mask, arm and leg braces made from black leather, a black leather belt-really just a long piece he tied around his waist, and black, mid calf high, skin hugging, boots made with the same fabric and design as the official ninja styled shoes, which made them great for grip, and also silent. Seriously, he couldn't even hear his own footsteps in them...  
He also had a pair of thin black gloves, with gripping pads on them.  
It was nothing like his other outfit, the one he used for messing about with prank wars, This was a proper outfit, made for stealth and silence.  
And it was one he had used for the last hundred years to create his alter ego, The Shadow.  
But he could not, in good conscience, continue to be so with his responsibilities and position as a guardian, yet he refused to let his character fade into obscurity.  
Time for one last run before he finally... wow, the term retired made him sound so old...  
But, first things first, he had no idea Bunny was still mad about the paint accident, and it had been an accident, even if he hated him at the time, so maybe he ought to fix that...  
_

Bunny blinked the following morning, when he woke up to find a case of paints, but not just any paints... They were an edible kind, but with something added to make them last longer... He could start to paint the eggs about a month earlier than normal with this...  
He blinked at the note.  
_'Long time coming. Sorry for the mishap. See you tonight... Or not.  
The Shadow. '_

Bunny found himself smiling, if unwillingly...  
But he could swear that writing was slightly familiar...

That night, Jack and Tooth said goodbye to the other three, and Jack flew Tooth to the palace, before saying goodnight and flying off...  
Right towards the Gemhouse.  
He threw off his hoody, and the loose black jeans, to reveal his outfit, and tugged his boots and everything else form a bag he had stashed in a small hole in a tree a while before.  
He pulled on the boots, making sure they were secure, then came the leather wrist/forearm bracers-a pre-written note wrapped securely inside-, and the leg bracers, which covered most of the bottom half of his leg, without hindering movement.  
Then he stashed everything into a bag he had ready, which he threw through a portal into the monastery, having lay a couple of orbs around in case he needed to make a quick getaway.  
Then came the gloves being tugged on and flexed, an exasperated sigh form the wind, ruffling his hair, before he pulled the mask on, having already rubbed some black face paint across his face and around his eyes so his pale skin wouldn't stand out, and chalk-dyed his hair black.  
Then he silently ran towards the compound, having already planned his basic way inside.  
He knew some of the security, having cased the place out a few years ago, but some of the additional security would make his original plan impossible, so he would have to improvise...  
But he had always been fine before.  
He double checked his belt, where he had a small dagger in a black sheath, so he could open doors, as well as a couple of smoke grenades, with no discernible marks on them.  
He took a deep breath, meditating for a few seconds, to get better in touch with his body and more relaxed and aware, as well as to focus his other senses and readjust to using them all as much as his eyes, and shook himself loose, snapping a tiny camera to the side of his mask.  
Then he leapt onto the trees that surrounded the gates to the compound.

He noticed the three cameras set up, and he threw a rock to the other side of the gate and the guards, on high alert, immediately raced towards it... Just as he had wanted them to. Then he waited for the minute second there was a blind spot with the cameras, which he had timed with throwing the rock, and leapt down, rolling into shadow. Fro their, he swiftly made his way to the security both, and plugged the cameras into a continuous loop of the 30 seconds he had before the guards got back. Enough for movement, but not enough to stir their suspicions.  
Then he ran across the clearing and to the thin line of trees, swiftly clambering up one to hide in the foliage.

That was when he noticed the trip wires in the trees.  
He grinned, nodding approvingly, before he began to swiftly and carefully weave his way through them, careful not to touch any of them.  
He got to the edge, and immediately sank into the shadow, blending in with a couple of clumps of leaves, as Sandy flew past, several sand dogs following him and sniffing.  
Thank Moon he had covered himself in a small lotion which would erase his smell for a couple of hours...  
He waited for them to pass, then mentally groaned when he saw a wall of fairies in front of him...  
He blinked as he realised that he was in an acorn tree and swiftly snapped one off, flicking it towards the row of trees on the other side of the drive, and quite far behind him, letting the wind carry it further, where, as he had hoped, it caught on a wire and set alarms go off in the area.  
He crouched down again, as a hoard of them passed, and groaned as he realised that a few had stayed, wary for a trick.  
He debated for half a second, then grabbed a thin, but really strong, black wire, from where it was wrapped around his wrist and shook it loose, and started whipping it in a circle.  
He suddenly flicked and released it, grinning momentarily when it managed to catch onto the edge of the post at the far side of the circular drive between him and the complex.  
He threw another acorn, momentarily distracting the other fairies, and leapt out, letting the wire carry him to the post.  
He shook it loose, and swiftly wrapped it back around his wrist, crouching in the shadows of the post and the tiny bushes next to it.  
Then he mentally sighed again, as dozens of yeti's appeared in the doorway, drawn by the commotion of the fairies and the alarms, and Jack frowned for a few seconds, knowing the entrance chamber to be loaded with lasers and cameras, meaning he had to get past the Yeti's, and navigate the room, quickly enough that he would only be a flicker to the cameras...  
Then he grinned.  
He loved Laser dodging.  
He kept low and half ran, half rolled his way to the corner of the building and did an army crawl along the base of the wall and stood up once he reached the side of the steps.  
He peered over, to see the Yeti's still scanning the trees and drive in front of them, and Jack grinned, backing up a little and clambering agily up the wall next to the steps, then swinging, with the beams, across the entrance, dropping down, and spinning around the corner to the small niche behind the door pillar.  
All in the space of a couple of seconds.  
Huh... Must be a personal best...  
He knew for a fact that very few people had bet on him getting further than the laser room, and he sighed dejectedly at the lack of faith.  
He crept into the entrance chamber, and clambered up one of the pillars to get a batter idea of what he was facing.  
Still in shadow, even though the faint night-mode lights were on, so he was not caught by the camera, he grabbed a tin from his belt, and took a deep breath, before blowing the powder into the room, revealing the lasers properly.  
He took a quick breath, memorising an planning his route inside the part of his mind he had trained for this kind of thing, before leaping form the pillar.  
He did a front flip, then a cartwheel, before launching himself upwards, spiralling through the air, then coming down in a crouch, before rolling beneath another laser, front-flipping over a couple more, almost falling forwards onto another,r but managing to turn it into a roll, before stepping up and casually hopping over the last, tripwire, laser and leaping back into the shadows.  
He sidled around the doorway, letting the dim light show him what he was facing next, and he almost snorted.  
Guards? Really? Did they earn nothing form the time that he managed to truss up two dozen of them without them even seeing him for the minutest fraction of a second?  
But he didn't have time for that.  
Debating between sneaking through, and throwing n a smoke grenade, he was about to go for smoke when a radio on one of the men crackled.

"Room 2? Come in."  
"Room 2 here. Any sign of him at the gate?"  
"No. It's all been silent... But there have been alarms triggered in the trees on the drive, though the fairies have told us it is from acorns..."  
"Acorns!? They wouldn't be falling! Damn it, ALL POSITIONS! HE HAS BREACHED THE PERIMITER! I REPEAT, HE IS IN THE GROUNDS!"  
Jack shrugged to himself.  
Make the decision for him why didn't they?  
Not wanting to reveal where exactly he was now that they were all on alert, he opted for the sneak attack.  
He scanned the schematics inside his head, which he had crept and found in the map vault, and looked up to where there was, sure enough, a huge pipe.  
He clambered up the pillar, on the laser room side of the door, and snaked his arm through, where the shadows were, to get a firm grip on the other side of the door arch, and flexed his muscles before he swung himself through and up into the corner, using the beams in the room as monkey bars, before swinging himself behind the pipe.  
He peered over the edge, to see everyone still focused on the doorway, and mentally sighed in relief as he realised that they were still riveted on the guy with the radio, and crept along the pipe, slowly, but silently.  
When he reached the far side of the room, he used the beams by the doors to swing his way down and peer into the next room.  
Great... More Yeti's... Who were more sensitive to movement.  
He knew, from his casing the place, that the next room along had a small door hidden in the corner, that most people didn't know about, which led up to a small store room, which, in turn, came out above the room with the gems in it.  
He decided to hell with it, and threw a smoke grenade, letting the gas start to go off before he used the beams across the ceiling to swing and flip himself to the far side of the room.  
He dropped down, running through and leaving the Chaos behind him, before leaping into the shadows and running, in a crouch to avoid any cameras, to the door, hidden in a niche behind a pillar and a huge display of a suit of armour, and slipped inside, running up the stairs.  
He raced through the store room and used his knife to dislodge nails and pull back up floor boards, as quietly as he could.  
Then he lowered himself down into the gap between the floor of that room and the ceiling of the room where the gems were stored, pulling the boards back, loosely, above him.  
Then he waited, until any noise he might have made could be dismissed, before slowly and quietly inching the ceiling tile, in the corner of the room, up and poking his head down to see what the security was like.  
Then he blinked, shaking his head in admiration.

The place where the gems were meant to be, in the centre, was indeed where they were, but not the real ones. The ones in the centre were fake, but if he had entered through the door, they lighting would have made them look real.  
As it was, he was currently popping his head down right behind Bunny and North, who were guarding a smalls chest, in the corner of the room... Right below him.  
He grinned, and quietly unsheathed his knife.  
Okay, the ceiling there was completely in shadow, so the missing tile would not be noticed if they glanced up.. and there was a small gap behind the table the chest was placed on.  
Perfect...  
He waited till he was sure the other two were focused on the door and the Chaos behind it, and let himself drop down, his boots landing silently on the floor behind the chest, and he slid down, holding his breath as he made sure Bunny had not heard.  
He breathed a mental sigh of relief, before, still holding his breath so that the sound of the breathing would not give him away, was about to pick the lock on the chest, when he noticed something strange about the table it was stood on.  
He grinned as he spotted the loose flap of fabric at the bottom, and gave them another approving nod.  
So, the ones inside the chest were fake too?  
Impressive.

He changed his plan, and used his dagger to slowly, and silently, peel the loose back form the cupboard/table the chest was on, conscious every second that a Pooka with ridiculously good hearing was not ten feet form him, and slowly pulled it back, grinning at the sight of the gems inside.  
He took the note from his wrist brace, and slipped it inside.  
Then he decided what the hell, and took out another note, that he always carried in the case of decoys, and used a dab f glue to glue it to the chest, with the words, _'Nice Try... ' _on it, before he flexed his fingers, and leapt back up, onto the chest, relieved when the boots made no noise as they landed, and he flipped towards another table, a few feet away, ducking down behind it, as Bunny turned, hearing something.  
And subsequently noticing the note.  
"NORTH! HE'S BEEN HERE!"  
North span, and they both blinked as they realised that a tile was missing.  
Before subsequently pressing a switch and creating an alarm and a lock down.  
Jack cursed.  
All the door locked and bolted, all lighting and alarms going off... No way he could get out the way he came back in or the way he was planning to...  
Damn it... He had a spare orb secured in his belt, but he couldn't use it without showing who he was, and he couldn't show who he was.  
Great...  
He flexed his shoulder and let his battle and stealth reflexes and instincts take over.  
Then he spotted another door in the far corner of the room. Storage room, he recalled form the schematics...  
"Wind..." His voice was the quietest whisper he could manage. "Distract them... I need to get over there..."  
A tiny breeze of acknowledgement, and suddenly a small table was knocked over on the far side of the room, the opposite side to where he was headed. North and Bunny ran over, and Jack, keeping to the shadows, ran to the far door, sliding inside the room.  
Then, taking down a ceiling tile, he clambered up inside and crawled through, dropping down in the security desk just outside the room.  
Ironic right?

From their, he hit the override switch, and flicked off the lights in the room and the complex, by rewiring a few wires and connectors with the aid of a little photographic memory image of a similar design from his own home. It never failed to surprise him how well human technology and magical aspects combined together...  
Now to get out of there.  
Because it only counted if he got out without being seen...  
Though, with the place still on lock-down, and him not wanting to risk the few minutes it would take him to override it... But then decided what the hell and did it anyway.  
Just for Paranoia's sake...  
Turns out Madame Paranoia was a big fan of The Shadow... Now why would that be?  
Then he groaned as several dozen spirits and yeti's began to pour into the room, and turned off the camera-let his escape remain a mystery- before he quickly leapt up into the gap above the ceiling again, not wanting the light from the portal he was going to open to draw attention.  
"Outside the complex..." he whispered to it, rolling it, and fell through the tiny portal into... The driveway. Great.  
He leapt behind the post he had been behind before, and decided to take the long way back.  
Namely keeping to the shadows on the grass and reaching the wall without tripping on the trip alarm wires that had been strung everywhere.  
He reached the wall without a problem, and hopped onto it, waited till a camera was about to land on him, then let himself become a flicker in the recording -as he always had since the cameras had been invented- as he leapt into the trees.  
He quickly made his way to where he had stashed the orbs, picking them up as he went, and ran a bit further from the complex, before using one to get back to the Monastery.  
Then he quickly had down to the small room, packed everything away properly, and emerged as Jack Frost.  
Then, because he was Jack Frost, he decided to go say hello to his fellow guardians, who were trying to catch themselves a Shadow.  
_

He had almost felt sorry for the shocked spirits, who couldn't figure out how their quarry had slipped through his fingers.  
So Jack decided to try and cheer them up.  
"Ah well, look on the bright side! This was his last run, right? You wont have to bother any more."  
But, funnily enough, they just responded that their bi-decadely chases of The Shadow were the things they always looked forward to.  
He was definitely surprised that pretty much every spirit had the same opinion, and even Sandy looked gloomy that it was all over. North looked downright miserable that he wouldn't have the chance to try and catch him again, and Bunny, well, he was just looking at Jack funny.  
And was also kinda sad about the whole thing. He'd had quite a bit of fun planning that night...  
Yeah, everyone seemed to be having fun where The Shadow was involved...  
Jack seriously hoped no-one made that particular connection...  
Of course, they were all groaning when they realised that their decoys had not worked, but were also grudgingly impressed, and not really that surprised.

Back at the Pole, the following morning, everyone who had been at the meeting and who had been there the night before were sat watching the video on the camera that had been left on North's desk-though they had no idea how it got there- and whooping and groaning as hey realised how The Shadow had got through last night.  
Then, as they watched the leaping through the lasers, followed by the silent way he managed to make his way into the actual structure of the building, Bunny cocked his head slightly, asking for a rewind of the laser bit.  
Where he recognised a very unique combination of styles and moves.  
When, combined with how much fun everyone had with the guy and the fact that The Shadow appeared to be a ninja, left only one conclusion really.  
And it prompted Bunny to shake his head, before head-butting the door-frame, and crossing his arms, beckoning to a very _'Oh Damn it all to MiM and back..._' Jack to follow him.  
Jack walked into the study, sheepishly, a few seconds after Bunny, who had his arms crossed and was tapping his foot.  
"There were some very impressive moves in the laser room..."  
"Uhuh..."  
"Only ever seen one other person do them before..."  
"Hmm... What a coincidence..."  
"Too right... But I guess we'll never see them again, seeing as The Shadow has decided to quit and all..."  
Jack raised an eyebrow, a smile starting to form.  
"Shame isn't it... But I guess he has better things to be getting on with."  
"Mhm..."  
Bunny managed to keep up the stern expression for a full three more seconds before it devolved into a grin.  
"Bloody show off. Smoke grenades?"  
"What can I say? Dramatic streak... And lots of yeti's. An awful lot of yeti's..."  
"Ah, understandable. But how the hell did you get out of there?"  
"Trick of the trade-"  
"Don't make me march in there and tell everyone that-"  
"Aww, you won't do that."  
"Oh no?"  
"Nope. I'm too lovable."  
Jack shot him a wide, innocent grin, and Bunny grumbled under his breath about conniving icicles with devil eyes, causing Jack to sigh and grin.  
"Aww, is the ickle Bunnywunny annoyed at the-  
"_Ickle Bunnywunny!?_ I'll give you ickle bunnywunny you- GET BACK HERE FROSTBITE!"  
_

Everyone back in the room blinked as they heard the sounds of crashing and the sharing of insults, before North rolled his eyes, Tooth sighed, and Sandy face-palmed, before turning back to watch, leaving the other spirits to wonder how common an occurrence it was to have Bunnymund and Jack trying to kill each other.  
CRASH!  
The other guardians didn't even blink.  
Huh... A _very_ common occurrence apparently.

* * *

**Me: *blinks as I get to my feet, nodding to everyone who simply shake their heads, as if me crushing one of them at random intervals isn't strange in the slightest... Though, in fairness, it isn't...* Hey everyone... Oh! Hi Gavin! Huh... So the ass sent me to Camelot. Oops! Sorry Gwaine... *helps him up from where I landed on him*  
Gwaine: Raven! Long time no see! What ya doin here?  
Me: Vader threw me in a portal.  
Gwaine: Ah... Oh, Merlin has been hoping you'll stop by. He has a new spell that he wants to show you. And Arthur wans to kno just what it was you released into his chambers the last time. It's still nesting in the wardrobe and everyone is too terrified to go near it. Well, everyone aside form Merlin, who just laughs. It's real creepy Rave.  
Me: Ah... I'll sort that before I leave. Where's Merlin?  
Gwaine: His Bat-cave most likely. Or annoying Arthur.  
Me: *face palm* Quit messing with the inter-fandoms thing Gwaine... Ya done here? *ignores the longing look he shoots at the tankard of Ale, throws some gold down on the bar and drags him out by his sleeve* Sooo... Tell me everything I've missed!  
_**

**Vader: *sighs as he grabs another screwdriver, this one sonic and from the Doctor's hand*  
Doctor: Hey!  
Vader: *ignores him* I've doomed us all... She's in Camelot, with Gwaine, Arthur and Merlin!  
Doctor: … Damn it. I'll go get the apples. You know she is influenced by Gwaine's addiction to the things whenever she come back from there.  
Vader: APPLES!? THAT IS YOUR GREAT PLAN!?  
Doctor: Hey, I'm not the one who tossed her through. If I were you, I wouldn't be fixing it-she'll find her way back when she feels like it- I'd be running to the farthest corners of the darkest universe and digging a hole and hiding in it for the rest of eternity.  
Vader: *freezes... blinks...* Oh Force... IM A DIS-VIRTUALLED JEDI WALKING...  
Doctor: Nah, she values you too much to get rid of you... But you're definitely in for some pain and humiliation...  
Vader: *drops everything and pulls out a bag of Maltesers...* Yo, doc? Got a cigar?  
Doctor: *eye roll* I'm going to get apples. Maybe it'll appease her slightly... *hops into the Tardis and vanishes*  
_**

**Me: *training with Merlin and the knights, whilst slyly watching a topless Arthur sparring with Gwaine* (What!? Don't judge! Ladies, tell me you wouldn't do the same!? Exactly...)  
Merlin: So... How dead is Vader?  
Me: *evil smirk*  
Knights: *back away with innocent whistles and sidle to hide behind Arthur*  
Me: Ohhh... Let's just say I'm grateful for you teaching me those spells...  
Merlin: *gasps* You wouldn't...? He'd never be able to show his face in he Star Wars Universe ever again...  
Me: *Still smirking* Oh, not just that one... I'm going to film it and hack into every fandom-verses interstellar news coms I can, and it will be broadcast live over every single TV, Holoscreen, Hologram, conversation mirror-so you guys can see it- water holo-image screens, and I'm even going to hack into the Tardis so the Doctor can see it. And show everybody. And I can't forget Po and Shifu's I-pads. And not to forget the Millenium Falcon so that Vader can never insult Han again without Han having perfect come back material.  
Everyone n the field: *takes a step back*  
Merlin: Woah... You don't do things by half measures do you... I ever told you I'm glad we're not enemies?  
Me: No, but it's sweet of you to say. Gwaine! You got an apple?  
Gwaine: *throws one to me*  
Me: *munching on it* Hmm... I should probably head back...  
Gwaine: *takes top off to continue sparring*  
Me: Or I could wait...**

* * *

**Hacker44-**Thanks :D I'm glad you enjoyed! And I will definitely be putting another friendship one in with Lily and Shady and stuff, because I don't have many more chapters to go now and I want to put them in again :D And I will have a couple more skills chapters, where Jack shows them something new :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

**Ice Cream-** Cming right up Buddy! It will probably be in another small drabble chapter, and a section will be on that, or it will be somewhere in a different chapter to start it off or something :D

**MEC-** Haha, I've already made mine, Lol :D But I don't think I'll have another prank war, as I am only planning to go to 60 chapters. I'll see what I can do though! And yep, Hero!Jack. Yet another side to him, Lol :D  
Sandy _would _be an awesome name for cat... Lol :D  
And hmm... The Yoda thing... My mind is just completely crazy. And as for the diary thing, I can't post it on the fic, as it's really long... Do you have an e-mail? Or a deviantart account? Or I could post it on my Profile for a day so you can read it? Just let me know :D

**M-** Yes. Yes he did. Because I could, Lol :D And yeah, I don't like spiders either  
Vader: Understatement... she has _really_ bad arachnophobia-  
Me: Shut up Vader... Evil Authoress who had awesome powers and isn't supposed to be afraid of spiders talking here?  
Vader: *smug grin and leaves*  
Me: *face-palm*But yes, I don't really like spiders, but it as he only film I could think of that fit with my idea *shrugs* Anyway, I'm gad you enjoyed!

**RobynSmith- **Haha, glad you enjoyed them :D And thanks :D I wanted t add another side to Jack and Obvious-Hero!Jack seemed like a good one to go with :D And really? *le gasp* THE DREADED DICTIONARY! Thesaurus' are handy little blighters though :D  
But lollipops are evil? Really? *blinks and looks around* *gulps* I LIVE IN A HOUSE WITH FIVE VERY YOUNG SIBLINGS WHO LOVE LOLLIPOPS! IM DOOMED! Lol :D  
Hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	54. Jack Attack

**Okay, first of all... I AM SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY! I was abducted by huge 8 ft rabbits from the planet veg, and had to help them stop their evil overlord, Carrotathon, from enslaving the entire galaxy with his army of mindless, long eared cabbage drones and... You aren't buying it, are you? *sighs* Darn it...  
Seriously though, I am really sorry! I have had so much to do it has been unbelievable... Hope this chapter makes up for it!  
Second of all, to those who are unsure, yes. I am planning for this fic to conclude with chapter 60... Which is why I might not be able to include every request I get, but I will try my best to get most in! Which might mean a couple more drabbley chapters, so I hope you all don't mind that *raised eyebrow with fingers tensed to write shizzle*  
Third... Wow, I got more new faves and follows for this chapter than I have in quite a while! So, without further ado... Thanks to **_**the hotpocket hunter, Magyk Knight, Star Anise, Flaming Eagle, The Earth Elemental, Bunnies are Vicious**_** (Lol, I had an evil bunny army in one of my Merlin fics... Cute, yet evil at the same time :D), **_**sandryofmindilan121, tsubasa91, AGmegan101, yaoi_fangirl_234, Kynater, Npanda, XxHopex, polkdots888, BeautifulHalfBlood, Valheru1988 **_**and **_**Artemisia Selene**_** for the faves and/or follows, and to **_**the hotpocket hunter, tsubasa91, **_**and **_**XxHopex**_** for adding me to your author fave/follow alert list :D  
Its really appreciated guys!**

**Anyways, this chapter is based off of a couple of requests, with a few smaller ones thrown in for good measure, and my own need to write something dramatic(I couldn't do angsty for some reason) for this fic, instead of it being just humour pretty much all the way through, so yep. Some of you will hate me... Some of you will... actually yeah, I think most of you will hate me at first...  
Vader: Yep. You take so long updating, then you almost place two of the readers favourite characters in a comatose state? I mean-  
Me: *throws hand across his mouth* OI! SPOILERS! And you have no right to talk, seeing as it was your fault I couldn't write. They don't have internet connections or laptops or electricity in Camelot, funnily enough... Oh, yeah. I got back and got my vengeance everyone. And I will be having a little flashback after this chapter, so you will all get to see why Vader can no longer show his face in public. Until then, enjoy the chapter!  
Vader: *winces and legs it out, hiding from everyone*  
Me: *grins evilly* Enjoy!**

* * *

**Number 1, The Fall of Fall  
_**

Fall hmm'ed as he thought over what the Spring spirit had said. True, Jack Frost was uncontrollable. A force who only reveled in making hell for everyone else. But how to stop him?  
It was the middle of Autumn, so he was at his peak.  
Yes, it could work... Now he just needed to find him.  
Fall smiled.  
Or maybe, they could get _him_ to come and find them...  
He called for several of his personal spirits and gave them their instructions.  
Yes, let's see Jack Frost get out of this one...

Shady blinked as he exited his cave, only to find several spirits waiting for him. Fall's personal spirits if their outfits were anything to go by.  
One of them stepped forward, speaking up.  
"Where is Jack Frost?"  
Shady suddenly got a really bad feeling about how this was going to end...  
_

To say that Bunny was shocked, to find a panicked and desperate Flow dragging him towards where he knew Shady lived, was an understatement.  
To say that he was shocked and worried as soon as he saw the bloody and pained shadow spirit would be even more of an understatement.  
And to say that he was livid that it was, yet again, Fall's fault, would be the biggest understatement of them all.  
There was no way on Moon he was going to let Fall get away with this.  
He stayed for a while to make sure Shady was okay, before he made a tunnel to outside Fall's palace, leaving Shady and Flow to share a look, before Shady forced himself into a shadow jump to the Pole, with Flow along-side, to try and get a hold of Jack. He'd want to know what was going on.

North was still cursing ten minutes after Shady had told him what was going on, and they had figured that this was all to get to Jack.  
Fall's hatred for the spirit was legendary. And it had only heightened when he became a guardian.  
But Bunny going there in the middle of Autumn?  
North was pacing worriedly when Jack finally arrived at the Pole, Shady having found him, -training apparently, if you went by the fact he was wearing his black 'Ninja' outfit- at the Monastery by checking everywhere with a few shadow jumps, and Jack joined in the muttered cursing when he heard.  
But it was a wide spread rule that no seasonals turned up, uninvited, to another seasonals when it was their season. True, only the older spirits considered the rules as official law and worthy of ceremony, but the younger ones, such as Jack, obeyed the unspoken rule too.  
Unless there was a very good reason, he couldn't go to Fall's.  
And apparently, North did not think _possible _danger to Bunny was a good enough reason, much to Jack's frustration. And Shady had told him that he didn't want Jack going after them for his sake, so that left Jack feeling mutinous when North left to go to Fall's to find the Pooka.  
Jack was left to glare at thin air.  
He was pissed off enough that Fall's spirit's had left Shady-who had, only a few minutes ago, slipped into a semi-conscious state- almost in a Coma, in fact, if the head injuries had been any more severe, or he had done any more Shadow Jumps, he would likely have been comatose for days. But if Fall hurt Bunny or North...?  
Jack left that threat open as a portal span into existence and North stepped through, half aiding, half carrying a barely conscious, bleeding and injured Bunnymund.  
Jack froze, eyeing the portal, and North blinked.  
Seeing the ice cold fury in the younger guardians eyes, which matched, if not exceeded, his own, North nodded.  
No way was Fall getting away with attacking one of their own.  
Jack bolted through the portal before it closed, leaving Flow, who was sat on one of the Sofa's, to wince.  
Attacking Jack's family? Moon help anyone who got in his way...  
_

Jack rolled over, absorbing the impact form his leap and leapt to his feet, as the portal closed behind him, finding himself facing dozens of Fall spirits, uniforms indicating they were the guard for the Fall Palace.  
Just doing their job...  
Shame.  
Jack's eyes were still ice as he left that room, leaving dozens of unconscious spirits behind him, himself having not so much as a scratch, and made his way towards the centre room.  
Apparently, his stint as the Shadow was going to come in handy after all, seeing as he knew exactly where Fall would be.  
Three more rooms and three more groups of guards knocked unconscious. But only lightly.  
Jack was saving the bulk of his fury for the spirit who deserved it.  
Speaking of which...  
Fall was looking as though he regretted his decision as Jack entered the room, his gaze resting on the High Seasonal, who barely avoided a flinch.  
Jack's eyes only flickered away for short amounts of time as he defended himself against the other spirit's attacks.  
He had yet to start any fight... That way, the other Seasonals would have no right to judge him.  
But with Fall?  
That was another thing entirely.

Jack was rather impressed by the abilities of the spirits in the room. He even had several scratches and cuts by the time the fight had finished.  
But he was pissed off.  
So that wildly tipped the scales in his favour.  
Even the wind itself seemed furious, and filled the room with a tornado of fallen leaves and bracken, which was turned to minute particles of frozen water as Jack started to release some of his pent up anger.  
"You attacked my family."  
"You had to be stopped! All you ever do is cause destruction Frost-!"  
"Once maybe. But no more. You on the other hand, attacking a spirit and a guardian, unprovoked!? Let's just say I very much doubt you will remain a high seasonal beyond this Winter."  
His tone was matter of fact, but the undercurrent of anger in his voice more than made up for it, and Fall was very adept at picking it up.  
"Is that a threat, Frost?"  
"You tell me."  
Suddenly, and with a yell, Fall sent a wave of autumn leaves towards Jack, cocooning him, and smirked, which rapidly faded to panic as Jack broke free of it with nothing more than a flick of his wrist.  
Fall sent several more waves of leaves at him, but Jack simply swept them aside with waves of freezing wind and snow, before letting all of his anger out.  
A hurricane of frozen wind, hail, snow and ice span around the room, gaining in speed, and Jack's eyes almost glowed in the midst of the winter maelstrom. Still, Fall tried yet again to attack Jack, who snarled and made the speed of the tornado pick up further.  
Then, everything froze and hovered in place for several seconds, before it all exploded in a wave of white and ice blue.

It took several minuets for everything to settle down, revealing a scene of utter destruction.  
The entire room, the very heart of Autumn, had been reduced to frost encrusted rubble, and icicles, snow, shards of ice and ice crystals covered every surface in the room.  
The heart of fall was now the embodiment of the harshest side of winter, and Fall was lying in a crumpled, gasping heap in the corner.  
Jack twisted his staff around and snapped it into place on his back.  
"Looks like winter came early..." he smirked, before making sure that none of the guards had been _too _hurt.  
It was only abut half an hour later when a portal opened and North, Tooth and Sandy leapt through, clearly worried.  
But the worry soon morphed to disbelief and awe as they took in the room.  
Jack, still not feeling up to being his usual cheerful self, gave them a nod.  
"Looks like it's going to be a long winter. Guards are fine but unconscious. Fall is still conscious, which is a shame in my opinion, and I didn't instigate any of the attacks so I'll have no official trouble from the other seasonals. Bunny and Shady okay?"  
North blinked, before clearing this throat and nodding.  
"Da. Will be several days before he is back to usual self, but he will be okay. Shady already awake, but will take some days before he is fully healed."  
Sandy butt in with some sign language, and Jack nodded.  
"I'm fine. Bit tired but it can wait. I expect we'll have some curious seasonals arriving soon to see why Fall was cut short so abruptly."  
"We can handle that Sweet Tooth, you go get some rest. I'll get you if we need your memory evidence."  
"Okay then."  
With that, he hopped through the portal, leaving the three guardians to stare at each other and Tooth to sigh.  
"No complaints about sleeping? He must be tired."  
"Da, but though he may be embodiment of winter, must be tiring to bring season around so soon, Da?"  
"Yeah..."  
Sandy was grinning to himself as the other seasonals started arriving, and had to stifle a silent giggle when he saw their expressions to the carnage.  
Looked like neither the guardians or Jacks friends would be bothered by any of the seasonals, or indeed, anyone at all- by the time this story spread through the spirit world- any time soon...  
_

The following week, Jack grinned as he read 'The Guardian'.  
Fall had been replaced with a high seasonal of better temperament-the first forced High Seasonal retirement in the history of forever-, and no-one had dared to complain about the fact that Winter started weeks early and that there had been no real Autumn that year.  
Shady was back to normal, Bunny was nearly fully healed and the other seasonals, after Jack had shared his memories, had pretty much legged it from the meeting.  
All aside from Old Man Winter, the High Seasonal Position for the winter season, who had struggled to hide an admiring look and was now musing over having a certain young Guardian as his replacement in a couple of hundred years.  
So, everything was good.  
Actually, it was better than good.  
I mean, it wasn't every year that you got to have a world-wide, snowy Halloween...  
_

_**(Okay, this was shorter than I thought it would be, so I'm going to throw a few more requests in, as mini-fics, to make up for it, and the next one is set right after this. Hope you enjoy!)**_

* * *

**Number 2, Halloween, Guardian Style  
**_**(Yes, I know, this one was requested back when I started this fic, all those months ago, and so, though it may not be as long as I would like, I hope you all enjoy!)  
_**_

Jack had three things to do tonight.  
One, Prank someone.  
Two, Scare someone.  
And three? Eat lots and lots of cookies.  
But with his plans, one and two were the exact same thing, so really, he only had to things to do.  
One, ruin Pitch's night and Two, Eat lots and lots of cookies.

He grinned as he head over to Burgess.  
He knew that Pitch would not be able to resist trying to make nightmares in Burgess tonight. Heck, I had turned almost into a game between him and Sandy.  
A dangerous and risky and serious game, but a game none-the-less.  
But tonight? Sandy was taking the night off.  
Jack grinned as he met with the kids, all of whom were in on his prank, and took in their outfits.  
Every single one of them was dressed like Pitch Black.  
The adults had thought it was some joke between the children and had gone along with it.  
Now that the whole trick-or-treat evening was over, they were all in their rooms, awaiting their guest.

They didn't have to wait long.  
Pitch flew down to Jamie's house first, and swept in through the window in a trickle of sand, only to scream like a little girl as the light was suddenly switched on and he was leapt at by four people all looking like him and all making unearthly hisses and screams.  
He promptly fell back out of the window, landing in a snow pile which had somehow found it's way there, before fighting his way out of it with muttering and curses.  
Bloody Frost. He had to have been behind this...  
Jamie crept over and peered out of the window, grinning as he saw Pith skulking off.  
"Its clear guys!"  
Sophie, Mary-one of her friends- and Mark all threw off their outfits and high fived, before getting ready for bed.  
They all loved sleepovers...

Pitch was still grumbling as he floated up to one of the other kids windows and swept inside, only to be leapt on by a Pitch Black wearing a neon Tutu and Neon Bunny ears.  
It was, frankly, terrifying, and he swiftly found himself screaming and flying back out of the window, only to fly slap bang into the side of a house on the other side of the street.  
Cupcake grinned as she finally got ready for bed.  
Best Halloween ever.

Pitch very tentatively floated inside another window, and relaxed when nothing jumped out at him...  
Only to yelp, turn around, run head first into the, now closed, window, slide to the floor, scream again at the sight, clamber out of the window, and huddle in a pile, muttering about Pink Pitch's wearing flowers and ribbons and giggling.  
He finally pulled himself to his feet, and scanned the rest of the, seemingly innocent, windows.  
Nope. No way on Moon. It just wasn't worth it.  
With that thought, he flew off back to his lair, to moan about the unfairness of it all.

Jack grinned as he saw Pitch fly off dejectedly, and sent up several spurts of snow, signalling that they had succeeded and that everyone could get some sleep now.  
He couldn't stop grinning as he said a quick goodnight to everyone and flew towards the Pole.  
Now to show the Guardians the photo's...  
_

Jack was still munching on cookies ten minutes after he had given the others the Camera.  
They were laughing their heads off, and it was only the first photo...  
He was still eating cookies-though he had moved from Chocolate Chip to Chocolate Chip and Caramel- _half an hour_ later, as the guardians finally moved on to the third photo.  
All in all, it was a couple of hours before they had finally calmed down enough to stop laughing, and Jack was actually kinda glad. He was getting rather full on cookies.  
He checked off the 'Eat lot's and lot's of cookies' from his list and sighed contentedly as he drifted into a light sleep on the sofa.  
Night well spent.

* * *

**Number 3, More Instruments?  
****(Yup, a request for him to be able to play another instrument, and who am I to say no? Hope you all enjoy! Even if it is ridiculously short... Though I do think the Song 'Here I Am', fits Jack perfectly...)  
_**

Jack sighed as he picked up the guitar. Apparently, Tooth had wanted to learn to play, then decided she didn't have the time so had left it.  
Now Jack had been coerced into promising to teach her, and she would be getting there in half an hour or so.  
Meaning he had to not only tune the guitar North had given him-which he had yet to play- but he also had to tune Tooth's, as well as get back into the swing of it. He was finally satisfied with the tuning, and sifted through the songs in his head for one to practise with.  
He settled on Pure Paradise, by Armik, a Spanish style song, to get his fingers back in tune with the instrument, before starting to work on making a guitar backing to 'Here I am', from the film Spirit.  
Because he hadn't tried it before and wanted to give it a go.  
Plus Sophie liked the film, so it would make her happy if he could play it.

Jack grinned as Tooth flew in, staring at him with a huge smile, and laughed.  
"Sorry. I haven't finished learning that one."  
"But it was really good!"  
"Nah, I'm better on the Piano. So... Can you read sheet music?"  
And so began a full three hours of Jack starting to teach Tooth to play the Guitar.  
Which turned into a weekly thing.  
Which morphed into Tooth being able to play the guitar at an intermediate level by the following Summer.  
Which ended with him teaching Flow the guitar and Lily the Piano.  
But, he figured, as Lily started her... well, Moon knows how many lesson, playing Strauss, he could have had worse students...  
_

**(Okay, some time passes during this section, as in almost a year, so you can use your very vivid imaginations to imagine what Jack was up to during that time. After all, the last few chapters haven't really had any defining dates or events to help keep track of things. In fact, I think a lot of time would have skipped.  
Aside from the fact that Halloween has just passed and Jack has been a guardian for 3 or 4 years now... I think... And yes, the kids are still childlike and shizzle, but I'm often told I have the mentality of a child, so that's my excuse there, Lol :D)**

* * *

**Number 4, Remodelling a Promise.****  
**

**(A long while ago now, Tooth fell in love with the small fountain in Jack's place, and he promised to build one. Well, I haven't mentioned it since, s figured I might as well round this chapter off with it. Hope you all enjoy!)  
_**

Jack crept out from behind one of the columns in the Tooth Palace.  
Baby Tooth had finally managed to distract Tooth, but Jack knew he wouldn't have long. It was Tooth's birthday, and though the guardians never really bothered with birthdays, seeing as they would have had hundreds of the things, he figured this was as good an opportunity as any to keep a promise.  
He opened a portal, and several yeti's leapt into the room.  
The small garden Jack had at the Monastery had been his inspiration for this one-which was going to be in a small, open-roof courtyard- and he and the Yeti's had already made everything ready. So they would need a couple of hours to get it all put together and for Jack to add the finishing touches.  
Which was about how long Baby Tooth could keep Tooth busy for.

As it was, they had everything dug out, assembled, sorted and basically finished within an hour and a half, and Jack grinned as he shook hands with, and high-fived, the departing, very proud and tired looking, yeti's.  
He then started placing the small water lilies, Japanese styled decorations and the plants.  
He was so into it that he didn't realise Tooth had returned until he heard a gasp behind him and found himself smothered into a hug.  
"Oh Moon, Jack! This is beautiful! How did you ever get it done! It's perfect! I love it so much and Oh, Baby Tooth must have been in on it and oh Moon it's simply perfect and..."  
This went on for a while as Tooth dragged him around the small space, ranting about all the tiny little details, before Jack finally managed to break her death-grip on his hoody and gasp in some air.  
"So... You... Like it then?" He asked, around gasps, and immediately regretted saying anything as he was pulled into another rib-crushing hug.  
"Like it!? I love it! It's incredible!"  
"Well, I did promise. Sorry it took so long-"  
But she wasn't listening. She was busy ranting to her little fairies about how much she loved it and Jack took the opportunity, as soon as Baby Tooth shooed him towards the door, to leg it.

That evening, Tooth decided to drop by the Pole, and Jack literally span in circles trying to find somewhere to hide.  
"Bunny!?"  
"I'm not getting in 'er way mate."  
"North!"  
"Sorry Jack, but-"  
"Oh, come on guys!?"  
The two shared grins, sitting back, and Jack gulped as he heard Tooth humming.  
"Oh... Drat... "  
Then he had an idea.  
A ridiculous idea, but an idea none-the-less.  
He leapt out of the window and let the wind carry him to where he wanted to go, though he was sure it thought he was insane.  
Ah well, desperate times call for desperate measures...

Pitch blinked as Jack landed in his lair, after sliding down the tunnel, and tumbled over.  
"I HAVE AN INSANE FAIRY QUEEN LOOKING FOR ME! HELP!"  
Pitch blinked, then sighed as Jack leapt behind his throne, peering out as though he thought someone would follow him down the chute.  
"Frost, you are aware that no-one will be following you? After all, in case you don't remember, we are enemies? Aside from the odd truce when there is an emergency-"  
"TOOTH IS IN GRATEFUL MODE!"  
"... Stay as long as you need."

* * *

**So... What did you think? Which was your fave? Were there any you didn't like? Did you hate all of them? Have any fave lines or moments? Let me know! Oh, and I will definitely be updating quicker, than I have just done, with the next chapter.  
Anyway, I promised you a flash-back about how I returned from Camelot and had my revenge? Well, let's just say I had some interesting requests for revenge... Seriously, some of you are really blood thirsty...  
But I find humiliation is the best form of vengeance... So, enjoy... *evil grin***

**** Beginning of Flashback...****

_**Me: Okay, so I will see you guys next time I visit?  
Gwaine: Sure thing...  
Merlin: Or can we visit you? I want to have a chat with Vader...  
Me: Aww, I feel so loved guys. Honest... See ya! *vanishes into a portal I just built from some string, a tankard, some magic and Excalibur... Though Arthur doesn't know about that(don't worry, it's still in one piece... At least, I think it is... Maybe...)***_

_**Me: ANAKIN SKYWALKER VADER!  
Everyone else who decided to choose this day to randomly visit my authoress headquarters: *freezes, then runs over each other in a stampede to escape, locking the doors to their fandoms behind them with sofa's, wardrobes and various other pieces of furniture*  
Vader: *gulps* O-Okay, now Raven... I didn't mean to- YEOW!  
Me: *having hoisted him up with the spell Levicorpus* Like Moon. You planned the entire thing!  
Vader: … Okay, yeah. But still-  
Me: *cuts him off by dragging him through the door to the DC/Marvel inter-verse and depositing him in front of the Justice League building, focusing on the power I need that me and Merlin were working on*  
Vader: Well, this is anti-climactic- WOAH!  
*is suddenly spinning daintily in the air, his outfit now baby Pink, and wearing glittery fairy wings and a Neon Pink tutu, whilst dancing about and using his neon pink light-saber like a wand*  
Me: *casually starts whistling and taking photos with one camera and getting Lois Lane to film it with another camera, whilst all of Vader's frenemies from the different universes come out and stare*  
Batman: Nice one Raven... *gives me a thumbs up*  
Me: Cheers Bats... Hey Robin! Mind popping over and getting some of the Star Wars universe over here to witness this? I'm going to post the pictures in my newspaper and.. a few other things, but nothing beats seeing it first hand...**_

_**Ten minutes later, when all of the people who wanted to come have come**_**_(which is enough to make people in this universe question why there is a fandom convention outside the justice league building)_  
_Me: Okay guys, let's head back. We're causing some suspicion with the natives!_  
_Everyone: *grumbles but heads back*_  
**_**Me: Now then, Vader... For the grand finale... *lets him down, where he falls flat on his face, and uses a spell me and Merlin perfected which was inspired by the recent prank war amongst the guardians*  
****Vader: Meow...? *now a tiny cute black cat with neon pink patches of fur around his ickle paws*  
****Me: *lifts him up and waves goodbye to the DC/Marvel guys, before hoping back through the doorway* ****Okay Vader, you go off and play and scamper like little kittens do, whilst I go and broadcast this to everyone...  
****Vader: *tries to stop me by swiping his little paws and swishing his tail back and forth, but I throw a ball of yarn and he goes and chases it down the hall***_

_**Me: *whistles cheerfully whilst broadcasting the video and the images onto every single system, in every single fandom, both futuristic, modern and old school magical I can hack... Which is pretty much all of them* There... Oh, Hey Doc!  
Doctor: *hops out of Tardis with a bag of apples*  
Me: Yay! APPLES! I am appeased... *Takes them and starts munching* Did you get the holo-vid?  
Doctor: *raises eyebrow* No?  
Me: Go check your console. I sent it direct...  
Doctor: *vanishes inside***_

_**A few seconds later...  
*****chocking, hysterical laughter is heard form inside the Tardis*  
Me: Ah, The scent of vengeance in the evenings...**_

****End of Flashback****

**Me: And the moral of this story? Never annoy me... It seems the various characters with plans and plots against me actually paid attention, and there have been no new attacks... Shame. I'm ridiculously bored...  
Han: Hey! Raven! Me and the guys are having a celebration to mark the Week's anniversary of the Fairy-Vader incident! Wanna join?  
Me: Will there be fighting?  
Han: Most likely...  
Me I'M IN! See ya guys!**

** Oh, and I didn't have time to respond to all of the guest reviews on this chapter, but I read them all through and I really do appreciate them! I will definitely get back into the swing of replying to all of you with the next chapter. As for the guest requests, I will consider them, but I only have a few chapters to go, so I may not get some of them in. Thanks so much to the newer guest reviewers, and Hello and *hugs* to all of my regular guest buddies!  
Till next time!**


End file.
